Practicing Your Preps

All the guns, ammo and equipment in the world won’t do you much good if you aren’t practiced and prepared to use it. I ran into this many years ago when we were transitioning into our current home. A strong thunderstorm rumbled through knocking out power across the area, no problem I thought as I had already brought the generator, but to my dismay the heavy duty extension cord that I would normally have used to power the refrigerator was not long enough to reach – fail. I thought I was prepared; generator, fuel, cord – but I had not tested the plan. If YOU have a generator, when was the last time you started it? Does it have gas; did you use a fuel stabilizer? The point is you need to test your preps periodically to make sure they will work in a crisis.

Recently I shared an article titled ‘Hey! That’s my water!’ in which the author tested their preps by turning off the water and the challenges they faced and the lessons they learned. Most people really don’t understand how much we take water and power for granted till it’s not there. Personally we have gone for days without power and tested our blackout preps, but I think I would have a really hard time convincing my wife to turn off the water! If suddenly the water supply stopped or was somehow contaminated, how long could you survive?

water 2

One area where I was lacking and I suspect I’m not alone, is in practicing with my firearms. I’m fortunate that I can practice safely on my property and avoid the range fees, but range time can be useful as well. Range time can help you smooth out your technique, dial in the sights or even get some professional instruction, all which are important. Some ranges actually have combat training which can be invaluable in developing your skills. Unfortunately I don’t have access to such a facility here so when I practice at home I like to work on those types of skills; shooting across your body, shooting on the move, etc. Practice, practice, practice; if you’re not properly prepared to use your weapon it might very well be used on you.

target practice 1

Being practiced and confident in your skills can turn a crisis into little more than an inconvenience.

Hope for the best, prepare for the worst.

Happy prepping!

Reasons You Should Be Prepping Now

N Korea

Although they don’t yet (stress yet) have the ability to reach the US with a nuclear weapon, there is some suspicions that their 2 satellites that frequently pass above the US are capable of launching an EMP. This rogue regime continues to develop their nuclear and ballistic missile capabilities with their primary target being the US and our allies.

Iran

The worlds largest exporter of terror is flush with cash thanks to the Obama administration’s ‘gift’ of $11.9 BILLION. Gee, what could go wrong?

Cyber Attacks

We just witnessed the largest known cyberattack in history. This attack appears to have been motivated by greed, but what if this attack had targeted the US electrical grid? Attacks of this type are growing in size and frequency and its logical to think that an attack targeting the grid could at least temporarily put us all in the dark.

ISIS

The terrorist group has taken a beating as of late, but their ability to inspire ‘lone wolf’ attacks in Western countries continues to be a threat.

Antifa

The ‘anti-fascists’ groups that have been causing chaos recently are in reality anti-Capitalism/anti-Free Speech/Anarchists who throw a temper tantrum if anyone dare express an opinion they don’t share.. This group of mask wearing activist snowflakes periodically emerge from their mom’s basement to throw bottles at the police and attack innocent bystanders. Should you encounter a group of these ‘protesters’ your best protection is to pretend to be a job recruiter – they will undoubtedly maintain a safe distance.

Corrupt Media

If you fail to see the agenda driven bias of the lamestream media by now, I highly doubt you ever will. Regardless of whether you love/hate Trump, can you imagine the damage to the economy, stock markets and the value of the dollar should a corrupt media manage to actually take down a sitting President. The fact that they refuse to accept the results of the election does not give them the right to subvert the will of the people. Can you imagine the chaos in the next election cycle should they actually succeed?

Things happen

The safety and security of your family is your responsibility. The police, fire, Red Cross, FEMA, etc., are all reactionary – they show up after the fact and are often too late to actually be of much help. If you are currently relying on some government agency to bail you out of an emergency situation – you might want to rethink your plan.

Hope for the best, prepare for the worst.

Happy preppng!

American Blackout Revisited

With the spring storm season here and the very real threat of storm related blackouts I thought it might be appropriate to revisit Blackout the Movie. This film by National Geographic depicts what might happen should the US electrical grid fail due to a cyberattack. Personally I think it does a pretty good job touching on the reactions of different people to this scenario. The video is free to watch via YouTube.

Hope you find it useful.

Hope for the best, prepare for the worst.

Happy prepping!

When Prepping Pays Off

Storms ripped through our area yesterday leaving thousands in the dark, but not all of us. I have to say I’m very proud of my wife as she executed the plan flawlessly. I was stuck at work 35 miles away when the storm took it’s toll, but she was ready. On my journey home I passed countless downed trees and darkened homes. I admit I was a bit surprised at how few homes I passed showed even a flicker of candlelight – most people were ill prepared for even such a common disruption of power. As I pulled in the driveway my wife met me at the porch with a flashlight, (she rocks) so I didn’t stumble in the darkness. Once inside I had to smile; she had our little LED lanterns strategically placed around the home, a few candles flickering in the main room, and a movie all lined up for me on the PC. Unlike our neighbors, our solar backup along with other preps, made this event a non-event. We were able to enjoy a meal, watch a movie, and go about our normal routine, (mostly anyway) as though nothing had happened. Although she’s always supportive I sometimes got the feeling she was a bit skeptical about my new solar experiment, but no more. We not only survived the storm, but while others sat in the dark, we were unscathed and even learned a lesson or two.

With our society so ill prepared for even common disruptions to normal life, can you imagine how they would react to a real SHTF situation?

Hope for the best, prepare for the worst.

Happy prepping!

28 Day Countdown – Fear of Taking the Plunge

28 Days and 14 hours as of this writing until I take that next step, leaving the 60 hour a week job for solitude in the mountains. It’s been a 10 year journey with mixed results, but we think we’re ready, but there is always fear. Fear of the unknown, fear of bad decisions, fear of losing that safety net. Hope for a better life, hope for living a healthier life, and hope of finally fulfilling that dream. Spring is always a time of new beginnings as nature emerges from its hibernation, we hope the same will be true for us. We have improved our situation a great deal since we first moved to the mountains.

· Retirement funds rebuilt
· More cash in the bank
· Debt is gone
· 2 new paid for cars
· New, more efficient appliances
· Improved security
· Reduced costs of living
· Large stash of food, water, etc.
· Growing and saving more of our own food
· Added solar power to our preps

I’m sure there are things we are missing, something we’ve overlooked, but here we go! We pray for guidance.

Hope for the best, prepare for the worst.

Happy prepping!

No Privacy in America

When visiting some news sites or downloading that new APP to your phone, ever wonder why you have to accept the ‘Terms and Conditions?’ Yea, you know why; you are giving them access to your device – willingly. I get it; I do it too, because refusing to agree keeps you from using Facebook, Twitter or even Microsoft word. We have come to accept the fact that privacy is limited if not nonexistent. Just yesterday FBI Director James Comey warned that “there is no such thing as absolute privacy in America.” He went on to say that “even our communication with our spouses, with our clergy members, with our attorneys are not absolutely private in America.” You can read the entire article here; you will probably notice that the CNN website asks you to accept their ‘terms’ to view the article. You might also remember the murder case in Arkansas where police got a search warrant for the data from an Amazon Echo that was streaming music around the time of the murder. Yes, your phone, laptop even smart TV maybe listening in on you, scary thought. And they wonder why we’re preppers!

Hope for the best, prepare for the worst.

Happy prepping!

Lessons From the TN Wildfires – Be Ready to Run

Bug in vs. bug out as long been the debate amongst preppers and your answer typically was based primarily on where you lived. If you were city you bugged out, country you bugged in with those in the suburbs kind of in the middle. We have always planned to bug in and ride out any disaster that might befall us, however, watching the carnage of the Tennessee wildfires of 2016 has given us a new perspective. You can read about them here.

The wild fires swept through the area at an amazing rate catching many off guard and forcing them to flee with little more than the clothes on their back. Churches and schools soon became makeshift shelters, but those arriving had absolutely nothing – they were completely unprepared for what had happened. Some hadn’t even heard the news reports and fled only when the fires became apparent – scary thought.

Here in my part of Tennessee a local gun range began organizing a relief effort (along with many others across the State), but what were the needs? Aside from food and water which the Red Cross had delivered, they needed the basics:

Deodorant
Tooth paste, tooth brushes
Diapers and baby wipes
Underwear, socks
Soap, shampoo

Personal care items that no one had time or forethought to gather before leaving, which brings me to my point. Aside from survival gear (here’s a link to an entire site dedicated to building a bug out bag), you should have a basic travel bag ready (mine stays in the car) in case you have to flee. Think if you were going away for a long weekend, what would you pack, and keep it light as you might actually have to carry it long distances. Being prepared is more than having a great stash of food and water or being able to function in a grid down situation; it’s being prepared for anything. How is your prepper journey progressing?

Hope for the best, prepare for the worst.

Happy prepping!