Sunday, June 24, 2007

Can You Hear Me Now? Communications Tips

The purpose of having a good communications plan thought out in advance is so that at any time, under any conditions, you will be able to communicate with family/friends/your survival team/etc with ease. Here's a few random tips to consider when putting together your communications plan:
  • For everyday communications, consider carrying a fully-charged cell phone as well as a pre-paid calling card for times when cell service isn't available. Good luck finding a pay phone, however, these have become as rare as juke boxes!
  • Consider carrying two cell phones from two different carriers as some have a better signal in some locations while the other may perform better in other areas, if this is necessary for you.
  • In case you can't use your cell phone and it's address book where all of your important numbers are stored, consider printing up and laminating a short list of important numbers and keeping said list in your wallet.
  • Back up your complete phone book, Outlook contact list, etc on a jump drive which you carry with you at all times.
  • Pre-plan who will be you local, state, across-country and outside-of-the-country contact person should you become separated from your family/friends in a disaster and make sure everyone has the person's contact info (name, address, phone/office/cell number, email address, etc). You may want to offer to be the contact for the people who are your contacts as well.
  • Consider having a back up, pre-paid cell phone and charger in your home, office and car.
  • Consider having a satellite phone if your situation warrants it.
  • Have on hand short-range "walkie talkie" hand held radios. These come in handy during vacations and are also valuable during a disaster. Be sure to store extra batteries.
  • Make HAM radio a family hobby. Make sure every one in your family/survival team is certified as an operator and very familiar with the process of communicating using a HAM radio. Practice/drill often and also consider how you would power your radios if conventional power isn't available.
  • Practicing other forms of communications such as sign language, a foreign language, Morse Code, etc. is also a worthwhile pastime as you never know when these skills will come in handy.
  • Learn how to discern information by watching how people communicate with body language, how animals communicate with each other and how crowds of people "communicate" as well.
  • Finally, include having a "secret word" with your spouse/family for use in emergency situations.

Saturday, June 23, 2007

10 Things I Have With Me Always

If you had to escape at a moments notice, what would you take with you? Of course everyone should have a BOB (actually three BOBS: one in your house, one in your car and one in your office) that they could grab in a moments notice which would sustain them for an indeffinite period. However, for daily carry, I always have about ten items with me that I could use to survive should I need to make a hasty exit and not return any time soon.
  1. Cash (this usually varies from $200 to $500)
  2. Good quality pocketknife (I've had this so long it's like an extension of my arm)
  3. All pertinent info on a jump drive (scanned important documents, work info, photos, etc)
  4. An untraceable cell phone (pre-paid with the load--minutes--always topped off)
  5. Firearm/ammo/CCP
  6. A laminated list of important numbers/email addresses
  7. My passport
  8. Untraceable credit card
  9. Tiny emergency supply pack (has a small flashlight, floss, needle, safety pin, rubber band, condom, aspirin, small lighter, handi wipe).
  10. A 'Plan B' and a 'Plan C' for every situation

Friday, June 22, 2007

First 10 'Merit Badges' for Adults

Here are the first 10 'Merit Badges' that all preparedness-minded adults should have:
  1. Certified as an EMT
  2. General Class HAM Radio Operator's License
  3. Completion of a motorcycle operator's riding skills class
  4. Thorough knowledge of use and care of a handgun
  5. Thorough knowledge of use and care of a rifle
  6. Thorough knowledge of use and care of a shotgun
  7. Ability to run (or at least walk) a marathon
  8. Completion of basic boating course
  9. Have a Concealed Carry License (if applicable)
  10. Thorough knowledge of how to use a GPS device/10 successful geocache finds

Saturday, June 16, 2007

As Prepared As A Boy Scout

Having never been a Boy Scout but knowing well their reputation for preparedness, I began to think about merit badges. Maybe in the future I will put together a list of merit badges for us preparedness-focused adults, however, for the moment, I am enthralled by the merit badge information list I found online at http://www.meritbadge.com/worksheets/ If everyone in the US completed such a list of tasks, we would be well on our way to preparedness for any disaster and have a greatly improved overall level of education in a nation where we continue to decline, education-wise, against other first-world countries.

Tuesday, June 12, 2007

DPT--Exercise

This tip is so simple it hardly bears printing, however I never cease to be amazed at the number of people, both professional and civilian "preparedness experts", who are over weight and under exercised. With 60%+ of the US population over weight or obese this shouldn't be much of a surprise, however this little tip is for everyone who truly wants to be prepared: exercise for at least an hour every day.

Monday, June 11, 2007

DPT--Pocket Knife

One must-have tool for every reasonably prepared person is a good pocket knife. It used to be an almost right of passage--as soon as a child reached a certain age, dad would bestow upon them a pocket knife; this was a big deal and a big responsibility. These days, the very mention of a knife in many settings (schools, on an airplane) sends people into a dither. Ridiculousness aside, carrying a good knife is important. Whether you use it to open a box, cut up an apple, whittle a piece of wood or protect yourself, you want to get yourself a good quality, properly sized knife that you will feel comfortable carrying at all times.

Sunday, June 10, 2007

DPT--Passports

Something new...the Daily Preparedness Tip (DPT).

Do you have a passport? Do you know when it expires? It's always a good idea to have a passport as it offers definitive ID without revealing much personal data about you (SS#, address, etc) and allows you to leave the country on a moment's notice.

So today's tip: get a passport or make sure your will not expire in the near future.

p.s. If you don't like the RFID feature of your new passport (some have these, some do not as of yet) word is you can beat it with a hammer until it the feature does not function anymore.

Wednesday, June 6, 2007

A 10 Step Financial Preparedness Plan

Wanna be prepared for financially trying times?
  1. Always carry $200 in your wallet
  2. Keep a few months worth of expenses, in cash, in your home (preferably in a fire-proof safe).
  3. Pay off all consumer debts.
  4. Be sure that you are adequately insured (life, home, auto, disability, etc).
  5. Have other sources of income aside from your regular job (ie: own rental property, have an online business, have a side business, freelance your skills, EBay, etc).
  6. Live below your means and save a significant portion of your income.
  7. Protect yourself from scams, rip-offs and identity theft.
  8. Have a variety of investments.
  9. Always have an employable, up-to-date, skill set.
  10. When you have reached a level of financial security, keep it to yourself and don't make it public knowledge that you are so well off.

Tuesday, June 5, 2007

Are Your Financially Prepared for a Disaster?

How financially prepared are you for a disaster? We are coming up on hurricane season and judging by the disaster that was Hurricane Katrina, it's a safe bet that many people in New Orleans and the surrounding area were not financially prepared either before, during or after the disaster.

Prior to a disaster, it is important to have all of your financial ducks in a row. The time to review your insurance coverages, gather your important papers, pay off your debts and save money (both cash at home and in the bank) is before there is even a hint of impending disaster.

During a disaster is when the impact of your prior preparations will be felt. Were you able to stock up on emergency supplies? Did you have the money available to evacuate the area on your terms? Were your important documents ready to grab at a moments notice?

In the aftermath of a disaster, you will be thanking yourself for your foresight. Being properly prepared ahead of time will mean that you won't have any surprises when you file an insurance claim. You will have the cash on hand and in the bank to start over if necessary. You will not have any consumer debts to weigh you down during this trying time and you won't be scrambling for documentation since you were already prepared and had all of your important legal and financial documents available at your fingertips.

It is infinitely easier to be financially prepared for a disaster if you start today by taking tiny actions that will add up to a complete preparedness plan before you need it.

Monday, June 4, 2007

Parlez-vous Francais?

Marunon kang mag Tagalog? Habla espanol? The value of knowing a second, third or even fourth language is immeasurable.

Why would you want to learn another language? Well, for starters, a white guy being able to bust out a karaoke song in Japanese in a Tokyo bar is guaranteed to get you free drinks for the rest of the evening. More importantly, it allows you to communicate with a whole new community of people. Also, if you travel regularly in foreign countries, the ability to at least know a bit of the language will allow you to get around more easily, build rapport with people who may be able to help you, and possibly save your skin in certain dicey situations.

How do you learn a foreign language? Simple, community college classes, finding a native speaker to tutor you one-on-one, even language lessons on CD will work. It's important to practice every day, maybe even twice a day, and it is also important to find someone to practice with since you need to both practice speaking as well as listening with your new language.

Want to really get fluent? Intensive language schools will work, however the very best way to become expertly fluent is a combination of classes then immersing yourself for a period of time in a foreign country where there is no English to be heard. The need to communicate will outweigh any embarrassment you may have about stumbling over your beginning language skills.

Sunday, June 3, 2007

It's a Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood...For Preparedness

It's a beautiful day today--sunny, temps should be in the high 70s, it's a quiet Sunday with nothing pressing to do. Which actually makes it a wonderful day for doing a couple of preparedness activities. Here's a short list of the things I will be doing today:
  • playing racquetball for an hour. Actually I make it a point to exercise in some form every single day for at least an hour. You can have all of the stores, skills and education in the world and not really be prepared if your body can't function in an emergency situation (ie: running, climbing, searching, etc. for an extended period of time).
  • depositing some money into my savings account. I do this about as regularly as some people go to Starbucks. Every time I go by my bank, I deposit some cash into my savings account; a five here and a ten there really adds up after a while.
  • working in the garden. Just a bit of weeding and watering keeps everything growing nicely.
  • revamping and reviewing my car BOB. I do this about every four months. I replace the food and water, check the first aid kit, check and replace toiletries as needed, and check everything that would need to work in an emergency (flashlight, stove, radio, walkie talkies, gps, etc) and make sure they are all functioning properly.

That's about it. It should be a nice relaxing day...

Saturday, June 2, 2007

TB or Not TB

After I read this article on Rockwell http://www.lewrockwell.com/akers/akers66.html I had to shudder. Not being fond of government control, I will be the first one on the bandwagon to protect the freedoms of myself or anyone else. However, an infectious person who knowingly acts in a way that could compromise the health (and therefore freedom) of anyone within spitting distance resolutely does not have the freedom to travel as he pleases.

Isolation and quarantine issues are a hot topic at just about every infectious disease conference these days. It's an issue that the government wrestles with and that the public should be very concerned about. One would think that a government order to stay home and not contaminate the public wouldn't be necessary and common sense would prevail in such a situation, especially for a self proclaimed "well educated, highly intelligent" person, but, alas, my faith in people taking responsibility for themselves in this society of "entitlement" is waning.

Many people are all for freedom when things are going well. However, with freedom comes responsibility. The responsibility to make the best choices for yourself as well as your neighbors (and in this ever-shrinking world your neighbors could be here, Italy or Asia). is a responsibility that should be shared by all.