Welcome aboard!

Set aside some time for some serious reading. Set aside a LOT of time. Then start saving your milk money, because you're going to see a LOT of things you're going to want to get discussed here.

I look at the site as a "preparedness" site rather than a "survivalist" site.

For me, being prepared means that when the power goes out for a while I'll be drinking my coffee, staying warm and eating well rather than freezing, looking for a hotel and trying to decide which end of the carpenter ant it was that was edible.

Enjoy yourself!