Bartering & Trading Part I

Bartering and Trading Part I

Bartering and trading have been going on since almost the dawn of man but it something that western society especially haven abandoned and forgotten.

Bartering or trading what we have that is spare or surplus to our needs is an excellent and very cost effective way of getting what we need that we cannot grow, raise or produce ourselves.

As the weeks and months go past the cost of living increases so much. We have so many people in our communities suffering financially now and these cost increases only compound the difficulties they have already been experiencing.

Something needs to be done, and profit margin minded business people and governments in financial predicaments are certainly not going to reduce the prices and costs for what we need to have, to survive. In fact they are all just going to keep hiking up the prices and costs to ensure that their profit margins are right up there and they are doing better than just okay.

Oh Yeah! I can see all the heads nodding in agreement now here for sure. Right!

Well that is, unless you are one of the money grabbing, high end, profit margin, seeking business people, and if that was the case you would not be reading my humble little blog to begin with.

Considering how important bartering or trading can be in our lives even today, and a great way to save money, I am shocked that this appears to be a taboo topic among all but the most dedicated survivalists and Prepper’s.

Trading or bartering for what we need, is a very important topic and one that very rarely gets discussed in the mainstream arena.

People that are struggling can improve things for themselves, even in a small way by bringing back the barter system and trading with friends, neighbours and family for at least some of the things they need. For example if you have chickens that have laid more eggs than you can use one week and your neighbour grows onions and has too many, then you can make a trade between yourselves.

Trade eggs

For onions 

And make an Omelette to feed yourself or the family

Photo credit Wikipedia

The result of this is that two households then have the ingredients to make a basic omelette, hence making a meal item out of two simple ingredients that separately cannot do this.

This is such a simple principle but one that so few people even consider.

Another awesome barter tool is services. For example if you love to grow things but do not have the space to do this but a neighbour has the ground but cannot garden then join forces. They supply that ground to grow vegetables and fruit and you provide the labour and knowledge to do it.

This way, you share the crops and both households are happy and well fed. It costs you very little to do because you both share the cost of the seeds and other than that it only costs you a little of your time and energy. This equates to very little output but with the potential for massive returns.

Surplus if any can then be used as bartering or trade items for other things that you need.

I am now going to take this a step much further. The need to stock up on food items is an essential for any type of survival whether it be just to have a backup supply of food and necessities in case of a short pay week or an influx of big bills that need to be paid. Or maybe the  loss of work all together  due to company cutbacks and let’s face it no one’s job is secure today, no matter how much we want to believe it is.

Then there are the other unforeseen acts such as losing a partner, and worst if that partner is the income earner in the family. All these scenarios are not at all pleasant but they also are a fact of life and things that every family at one time or other will experience.

So having a good supply of stored, non-perishable foods is an excellent buffer to help us get through a tough spot whether for a week, a month or longer. If we have items that we can use to barter or trade with friends or neighbours, then this not only helps us out but potentially helps our friends or neighbours out also.

Sorry I digressed there for a bit. Maybe this is a good time to stop here and leave the rest for another day. For many this will be a lot to take in and for others it is just enough to spark interest so I will stop here for today and maybe post more on this tomorrow.

These are just my random thoughts while sitting here in the wee small hours of the morning. 

I would love to read what others thoughts are on this topic of bartering or trading depending on the phrase that you use for this age old monetary system.

What your ideas can you think of for bartering or trading with family, friends or neighbours to gain items that you might need?

How will you and your family survive should a crisis happen? 

Are you prepared to barter or trade?

If you like this idea and have some thoughts and ideas on this of your own, that would help other folks, then please do share them so that we can in turn help others that might need some inspiration.

©Tina