Don't Be Like Everyone Else!

It truly is terrifying to look around in a crowded public place and realize you might be the only one fully aware of your surroundings. 

People are so enthralled into their daily rituals and phone checking to understand things can go south in a blink of an eye. Having your eyes up and watching what is going on could be the big difference between dying and surviving a sudden dangerous situation. 

I walk through Walmart and see people loading up their food carts. But it's only enough for the week. Why? It's so simple to slowly build up your emergency supplies now!

You don't have to go to the store and spend hundreds of dollars for supplies tonight. But at least buy a few extra items each time you're there. If you eat tuna, buy a couple extra cans. Maybe you like pickles. Buy two jars instead of one this time. 

Those few extra items will add up to a large stockpile. A larger stockpile than your neighbors. 

Because I guarantee none of your neighbors are prepared! 

Don't find yourself in a nasty situation without any supplies. Don't find yourself looking back on today, realizing how easy it would have been. 

Don't put yourself in that situation. 

Keep on prepping!

Going Beyond Canned Food

For most people, building up supplies typically means buying lots and lots of canned and dehydrated food with a 2 - 25yr shelf-life. This food is a necessity and will save your family's life in a disaster situation. 

However, there is a way to get beyond the canned food and give yourself a couple of good first few weeks to a month of yummy food.  

Before I start, I am not saying you should alter your canned food supplies at all. Canned food is what will allow you to survive longer than most in an extended disaster situation. Maintain your large supply of canned food and dehydrated food etc. I am just saying, maybe we can delay your reliance on what some call less-appetizing food choices. 

What we must realize here is most disaster situations will be for a much shorter period of time than expected. Meaning you might only need a couple of days to a week or two of supplies before help arrives. While we should always plan for the longest survival situation we can afford, your initial food supplies can have a shorter shelf-life because you will be storing items you eat on a regular basis. By having a regular rotation you will be eating the food and replenishing far before the actual expiration date. 

What you will be doing is buying extra of the items you normally buy in a grocery trip.  

My family loves crackers, potato chips, granola bars and cereal. These items all have a shorter shelf-life than canned food but they are still good for on average of 3-6 months after I've purchased them. I buy a couple of extra boxes and store them with my other supplies. Then I rotate them into my family's cupboards as we eat them and continue to buy new boxes when I return to the store. Thus replenishing my supplies and extending the final enjoy-by date. 

Storing familiar food items will not only create a happier atmosphere in a bad situation but it will also be easier on your stomach. Unless you are used to eating dehydrated and canned food regularly, this food will most-likely cause stomach issues. Nothing like tossing diarrhea on top of scary dire times. 

A list of items we keep on hand: 

Crackers, potato chips, granola bars, mashed potatoes (just add water), cookies, spaghetti (don't forget jars of sauce), other sweet treats, beef jerky, and pudding snack-pacs. 

Just check the expiration dates on your regular purchases and you'll develop your own list pretty quickly. 

Keep on prepping!

Three States Warned of Potential Terrorist Attacks on Monday

If you live or will be visiting Texas, New York or Virginia next week, be vigilant and monitor your surroundings at all times. Any suspicious activity should be reported to authorities in order to prevent any potential attacks.

Even if you live furthest away from any of these states, I would not consider your area safe. Just because these states have been named does not mean there aren't other states in the scope of would-be terrorist attackers.

Protect yourself and your neighborhood. Do not casually rely on the FBI and Homeland Security to prevent attacks before they happen. Intelligence typically prevents these attacks but when the intelligence community warns us, we must be ready.

Keep on prepping!

Prepare for Cyber War

Cyber war may now be our single biggest threat heading into winter as attack allegations continue between US and Russia.

Russia continues to deny recent attacks on American websites including the DDOS attacks which interrupted sites like Twitter and Reddit on Friday. Jester, a powerful American vigilante hacker, has warned Russia against further attacks by hacking into their Ministry of Foreign Affairs website.

While most of the recent attacks have been on Democratic platforms and aimed at interrupting Hillary Clinton running for President, you can bet the attacks will grow to affect every American. These acts cannot be condoned as it welcomes future foreign attacks on a system we rely on for survival.

Every system Americans have come to rely on is connected to the internet and is vulnerable to cyberattack. The electrical grid, water treatment plants, financial systems and nuclear power plants.
If you think our systems our impenetrable to an attack you will be one of the surprised sheep when it happens.

Prepare yourself for an extended interruption in our electrical grids or financial systems as foreign affairs continue to spiral into dangerous territory. Threats of war are usually just threats but we have now experienced direct attacks from a foreign government and it is time to be prepared for more extensive attacks.

Keep on prepping!

Why I Became a Prepper

Most of the population is not prepared for a disaster situation and I will admit I used to be one of them. I wasn't always attentive to my surroundings and the aware of the possibilities of our great country coming under attack.

When you think about it, it's easy to become reliant on the systems our government has put together for us. Electric, heat, food supply, clean water are all now necessary systems for the survival of the majority of US citizens.

US Congress once did a study and found that if the country were to lose the electrical grid, 98% of Americans would be dead within the first year because we wouldn't have access to food, water, medicine etc. You get the idea. 

I never thought about what would happen if those systems suddenly became interrupted. I never wondered what I would do if I couldn't drive down the road to the grocery store and replenish my food supply. Or what would happen if I turned on my faucet and no water came out. 

Disasters typically don't give us a heads-up that they're coming so that we can run to store and stock up on supplies. 

One day, I found the book Patriots: A Novel of Survival in the Coming Collapse and began reading.

It's not my typical book, as I prefer to read non-fiction. Even though this book is fictional, there are many facts about survival tools and firearms that it's hard to classify it completely as fiction.

This book opened my eyes to not only the immediate dangers of a post-collapse America but also the threats that occur months down the road as vagrants and gangs try to survive by killing and stealing.

When the shit hits the fan, this book will be the number one reason that I will be ready.

Must-Have Survival Books

Preparing for a disaster is all about acquiring information and maintaining this information for when it's needed. There are lots and lots of books written about surviving in disaster situations, but I've already spent my money on many of these and know which ones to recommend.

Let's get started!


SAS Survival Guide is a great general guide to surviving in any situation and climate. 



Shelter is the top priority so make sure you're familiar with all types.




A Field Guide to Wild Edible Plants is a must-have because you must know what is edible and what isn't. 




Know how to protect yourself and your supplies.



Read as many books on the subject and when you're done, store them in waterproof sealed bags just in case you need to leave in a hurry. 

Keep on prepping!

How To Always Protect Yourself

News of mass shootings and terrorist attacks continue to increase and until people start standing up for themselves and stopping these individuals, we will proceed on this downward spiral.

 Keeping you and your family safe should be your number one priority everyday!

BE ALERT
Always be aware of your surroundings. Always! As humans, we are built for survival. Our senses are there to protect us and warn us of problems. Use them and always scan your immediate area for potential threats.

KNOW YOUR EXITS
Escaping a threat and seeking help is always the best option before attempting to stop the threat yourself. You can either end up hurting yourself or going to jail because you used unnecessary force. The Police are trained to stop threats and protect others.
If it's an option, always escape and seek help! Living to see another day is not a cowardice act.

DEFEND YOURSELF
When escape is not an option and you must defend yourself, your goal is now to incapacitate the threat so that you can escape and seek help. Let's talk about the multiple levels of self-protection.

Most states allow law-abiding citizens to obtain permits to legally carry a handgun for protection. I understand not everyone is comfortable carrying a gun around and that's ok. But before ruling this out, I would recommend going to your local firing range and getting comfortable through personal training with a gun instructor.

Keep in mind that pulling out a gun is the last form of self defense you ever want to employ. Many people have gone to jail because they used a firearm unnecessarily in a situation that didn't warrant the use of a gun for protection.

Another form of protection is carrying a folding tactical knife. Many businesses do not allow guns on their premises, so carrying a knife at least prevents you from being helpless if a situation arises. I highly recommend a TAC Force Assisted Opening Tactical Knife as the spring mechanism allows you to open the blade much faster.

Another great item to keep on hand is Pepper Spray. Pepper spray is a non-lethal form of self defense and it will incapacitate your attacker, whether human or animal. I always keep pepper spray on me when I'm walking my dogs to protect us from other dogs. I'd rather not use lethal force against an attacker if I have the option.

The last form of protection you have in your arsenal is hand-to-hand combat. I don't suggest this even if you're a highly trained in mixed martial arts. Again, your job is to get away from the threat as fast as possible and a street fight is rarely quick.

Do yourself a favor and always make sure you have some form of protection on your person at all times.

Keep on Prepping!

Alone Season 2 Episode 1

I was super pumped to see the new season of Alone was coming soon and have been counting down the days until this first episode.

I'm sure a lot of people will agree it will take a lot for someone to outperform Alan from Season 1. He seemed to calmly handle every situation thrown at him and understood his biggest competitor was his own brain.

I was able to learn a lot about each person in the initial episode showing how they pick the contestants and test them, but I don't feel like we actually meet them until they're alone out there.

Having said that, we only met four of the new contestants in this first episode and I wonder if that means we have a shorter season and less footage to work with.

Desmond White had a lot of camera time in this first episode and I figured it was because he was the first one to return home. The theory was proven correct rather quickly. He actually decided to call it within the first day after realizing he was surrounded by bears and not as prepared as he had thought.

I was very surprised he made the decision so quick but it was a very tough decision I'm sure and one I will not judge. It is easy to sit in my cozy chair and say I wouldn't quit, so I just keep my mouth shut.

I had my questions about Tracy Wilson, mostly because of her weight. I won't lie. But seeing how calm she was while animals roamed around her shelter at night was extremely impressive. Maybe she is cut out for a long haul this season after all.

I like Larry Roberts and hope he can overcome his shelter issues. He had a strong motivation to experience this show for himself and I hope he continually reminds himself of this before quitting. Having a family that has grown up and moved out may be in his favor, as I know from season 1 that having little ones plays a large role in that decision to throw in the towel.

Speaking of little ones, Mary Kate Green seems knowledgable and may have a chance but I just can't give her the benefit of the doubt at this point. Having two small children at home is going to play a very large role psychologically and I don't believe many moms can voluntarily be away from their babies for very long. I also feel she was immediately dealt a bad hand by having to walk from the plane through the water and get her gear wet. We know from season 1 how important it is for the gear to stay dry and she is already in trouble with wet equipment.

I really wish this first episode would have been longer to allow us to see each person and how they fare on their first day. It will be difficult to wait a week before seeing the others but I guess I have no choice.

I am excited to see more of Jose Amoedo and think he may be the one to beat this season.

We shall see.