Banjoest is right. In times of hardship we'll eat what we have to. It occurred to me that I could buy a case of barbecue sauce and just wait for the marauders. I used to hunt deer with a 30.06 and will probably downsize to a .243, so if it comes to it there probably will be a plentiful supply of food for a while. I like the lentil and beans idea too. They could be put on the fire to draw the "meat" in for the kill.

But seriously, I've learned about freeze dried vs dehydrated food over the past few days and am making plans to purchase the 30-year shelf life 'last option' foods. Hopefully we'll never need them, but it will be good to know they're there. I have hand grinders that I used for an unrelated project years ago, and now I need to study grains and beans. They seem to be the best investment for the cost/nutrition ratio. Those plus oil can keep you going.

Lots of water is needed to rehydrate and to cook, so I need to drill a well on my property. It's about 3 dozen acres 100-200 feet above a very fine minor aquifer. A daytime solar pump or a hand pump should suffice for drawing up the water. The land is covered with brush, so fuel for fires will never be a problem.

The neighbor runs his cattle on the place, so we need to fence off a good garden area and then start a mulch/fertilizer collection system. Seed kits and tools, and How to books adapted to the local area.

There's a small, unincorporated town about 1 mile away (down paved roads), so a 3-wheel bike with a basket to get to the feed store. I'm going to check on wheat prices today and pick up a bag of feed wheat so we can do some experiments. Apparently you can grind and cook it, or you can sprout it, and it's cheap.

Thanks for all the advice.

PS -- I sympathize with you, bubblyrat. I can't imagine living in a society that doesn't allow you to protect your loved ones. Good luck.