The Hellscapade

One day the phones will stop working, or you'll get tired of big brother snooping all your conversations. Meshtastic equipment is about $25 for the radio, another $10 for an antenna. Add a $20 solar panel and an 18650 battery and you've got a solar powered node for the mesh network. Get a cheap pelican case from harbor freight and put magnets on it, and yes, put some vent holes in it and paint white. Now climb a water tower… or farmer's silo…. or even climb a tree with a deer stand and screw it to the side of the tree 50' up. While you are up there look around for the next tall object and repeat.

You can get a LillyGo T-Deck that looks like a black berry phone for each user in the network. Or you can use the $25 radio and a cell phone. Best to use an android phone and turn off wifi and cell service.

If you can afford it, you should definetly think about adding a pond to your homestead.

Although it might attract mosquitos during the summer (a counter-measure would be adding fish and frogs to eat the eggs), it improves the micro-biome drastically.

Bees will come and drink, as will birds. When birds have the possibility to drink, chances decrease that they will eat your fruit or berries, as they satisfy their need for hydration from the pond water.

On sunflowers

On mills

Water driven mills had a crucial task in the past: wheat had to be transformed to flour which was an essential part of peoples nutrition.

But think about it from another standpoint: if there is a water driven mill in your area, possibly even owned by you: What prevents the local community from turning this former wheat grinding mill into a water driven power generator?

The ideas are there, it just needs engineers to transform mills into generators.

Food can be acquired by hunting, foraging, gardening and taking care of lifestock. Flour isn't that essential.