There are different levels of societal breakdown and it's hard to build an extremely detailed plan without knowing what Oberr's location is like. If you have to be concerned about roving bands of starving people sniffing you out then by that stage you should have already organised (or more likely simply joined) the local area protection militia. Scavenger/marauder types are literally going to be going house to house, door to door, so it will hardly matter if they can smell food or not. They're not going to ignore a house simply because there's no smoke coming from it or no smells of food.
If you're envisaging a situation where you have to control for food cooking smells then by that stage living in a lone, rural house of any description is a death trap.
This is why I advise people against buying rural properties outside of the town boundaries. Hobby farms are functionally indefensible for a typical family unit. You either need to be part of a functioning village or you need to get very very remote, which is not an achievable lifestyle for 99% of people.
But reasonably speaking it's not like the grid goes down and five minutes later you're shooting zombies. Venezuela has been descending into shithole status for many months now and there are no roving packs of cannibals prowling the countryside sniffing the wind for a scent of canned sphaghettios being cooked over an open flame.
It's a good reminder, though. You should have a battery powered local uhf radio running at all times. The frequency the local truck drivers use will almost invariably be the one used by the locals for organising against whatever threats arise. If at any stage you are offered the opportunity to move into the town for your own safety and the benefit of the township (more fighting aged males in one spot) then pack your stuff and move.
Regarding living a terrible life not being worth it, every one of us have ancestors that struggled through unimaginably shit times. Sure, it pays to do better than the bare minimum but if that's what it comes down to then struggle on. How many people alive today have lived through such times and been glad to have come out the other side to live the rest of their lives happily?
p.s. If Oberr's house is outside of the village's line of defense then he would do well to acquaint himself with the town locals to the best of his ability (assuming he hasn't already).
I should hope he has guns and common caliber ammunition to bring to the party. If he's under 40 and physically capable he will more or less be deputized by whatever core group of leadership evolves, and he would be wise to come in under their protection.
p.p.s A decent guard dog may be worth the investment of food it takes to keep it alive and barking. You don't need a government permit to own one and for one reason or another people are often more afraid of a dog than a gun (primal wiring I suspect). Feed it at the break of dawn and keep it hungry overnight. A hungry dog sleeps lightly.
![[Image: 27974d11e56a04a87f1647c3a5432204--servic...e-dogs.jpg]](https://i.pinimg.com/736x/27/97/4d/27974d11e56a04a87f1647c3a5432204--service-dog-training-service-dogs.jpg)
To my mind Belgian Shepherd type dogs are a good compromise between size (amount of food required) and intimidation.
If you're envisaging a situation where you have to control for food cooking smells then by that stage living in a lone, rural house of any description is a death trap.
This is why I advise people against buying rural properties outside of the town boundaries. Hobby farms are functionally indefensible for a typical family unit. You either need to be part of a functioning village or you need to get very very remote, which is not an achievable lifestyle for 99% of people.
But reasonably speaking it's not like the grid goes down and five minutes later you're shooting zombies. Venezuela has been descending into shithole status for many months now and there are no roving packs of cannibals prowling the countryside sniffing the wind for a scent of canned sphaghettios being cooked over an open flame.
It's a good reminder, though. You should have a battery powered local uhf radio running at all times. The frequency the local truck drivers use will almost invariably be the one used by the locals for organising against whatever threats arise. If at any stage you are offered the opportunity to move into the town for your own safety and the benefit of the township (more fighting aged males in one spot) then pack your stuff and move.
Regarding living a terrible life not being worth it, every one of us have ancestors that struggled through unimaginably shit times. Sure, it pays to do better than the bare minimum but if that's what it comes down to then struggle on. How many people alive today have lived through such times and been glad to have come out the other side to live the rest of their lives happily?
p.s. If Oberr's house is outside of the village's line of defense then he would do well to acquaint himself with the town locals to the best of his ability (assuming he hasn't already).
I should hope he has guns and common caliber ammunition to bring to the party. If he's under 40 and physically capable he will more or less be deputized by whatever core group of leadership evolves, and he would be wise to come in under their protection.
p.p.s A decent guard dog may be worth the investment of food it takes to keep it alive and barking. You don't need a government permit to own one and for one reason or another people are often more afraid of a dog than a gun (primal wiring I suspect). Feed it at the break of dawn and keep it hungry overnight. A hungry dog sleeps lightly.
To my mind Belgian Shepherd type dogs are a good compromise between size (amount of food required) and intimidation.
The public will judge a man by what he lifts, but those close to him will judge him by what he carries.