10 Items to Have With You When You Are Stranded in an Airport

I still have a few more weeks of flying before I get back home for a month or so, then it will be off to Asia, most likely before the new year. If there is one thing that is nearly a guarantee for travelers, it is that you will be stranded in an airport during at least some point in your journey. Here's ten items you need to have with you in order to be prepared for these inevitable delays:

1. A cell phone. Actually I can't think of anyone who doesn't travel with a cell phone these days and I can't imagine being stuck without the ability to contact friends and relatives who are expecting me or being able to call the airlines to rebook a missed flight.
2. Internet access. Actually I have redundant systems for this. I always carry a netbook with me for the occasional airport that offers free wi-fi access, and I also have internet on my cell phone.
3. Food. There are a few airports that have pretty great food in their (highly over priced) restaurants, but sometimes I just want a snack so I tend to carry a small bag of food with me whenever I travel. Items include: granola bars, beef jerky, trail mix, nuts, dried fruit, candy, etc. I've also been known to travel with fried chicken and separately packed components of a subway sandwich which I can put together on the run.
4. Entertainment of some sort. Whether it is a book, a Kindle, a deck of cards, games on an iPod Touch, music on your cell phone, or something else that takes your mind off of being stranded, some sort of entertainment will help wile away the hours in an airport.
5. Contact numbers. For those times when a slight delay turns into a day or more "stranded in the airport" situation, I like having numbers of local contacts that I can call up for everything from a ride into the city (for more rural airports that lack public transportation) to a meet up for a coffee or impromptu business meeting.
6. A way to secure my bag to me. Since I only travel with one bag, it makes it easier to both have all of my stuff (a change of clothes, toiletries, etc) with me and keep an eye on it. For those times, however, when you end up sleeping in an airport, a way to both secure your bag itself and secure the bag to you is a good idea. Fortunately I am a pretty light sleeper and I tend to put my bag where someone would have to hop over me to get to it.
7. Plenty of cash. This should include both cash on hand and adequate reserves in your ATM-accessible bank account and/or on a credit card. On rare occasions you could end up stranded for literally days (think 9/11 when all aircraft were grounded for days or the Iceland volcano incident which similarly grounded all flights in the area for days). In these situations, airlines won't usually cover the cost of a hotel, and if you really need to get somewhere, you may end up renting a car or taking ground transport to your destination, all of which will require additional cash you didn't plan on needing.
8. Items to make sleeping in an airport more palatable. Even though I am a light sleeper, I an fortunately able to sleep anywhere, any time. On a rock in the desert in broad daylight, above a rambunctious bar in downtown Manila, doesn't matter, I can sleep easily. Others, however, have trouble sleeping without ear plugs, eye shades, a blanket, a pillow, etc. If this is the case, either bring these items or be able to improvise them.
9. Business cards. You never know who you will meet while slogging through long hours of boredom in a shut down airport. It's a nice idea to have business cards with you in case you want to trade info with people you meet.
10. A personal info sheet. My personal info sheet has all sort of important info on it that comes in handy in a variety of travel situations. For example, I lost--probably misplaced although it could have been stolen--an ATM card from one of my bank accounts a few days ago. By looking at my info sheet, I simply called the bank (number was on the sheet), gave them my account and ATM card numbers (ditto), and had them cancel the card. Obviously I could have called information for the bank's number then asked them to look up the information but it is much more efficient to have all of this important info at my fingertips. I keep all sorts of other information on this sheet as well including airline phone numbers and frequent flier account numbers, user names and passwords for all of my online accounts (the passwords are in code of course), personal info (allergies, blood type), etc.

Link Round-Up: LifeHacker's Evil Week

Being just a week before Halloween, LifeHacker has instituted 'Evil Week' in celebration of the holiday. Here's some interesting links that may appeal to CNI readers:

• Learn to Pick Locks for Fun and Security
• How to Manipulate People
• How to Crack a Wi-Fi Network's WEP Password
• Defeat Food Thieves with Laxatives
• Firesheep Sniffs Out User Credentials on Wi-Fi Hotspots

Find more interesting evil tricks at LifeHacker's Evil Week page.

10 Travel Tips, Whether You Will Be Gone for Two Days or Two Years

Here's ten tips for traveling that I wish I had known years ago:

1. Travel light. One bag max, one small bag preferable. Even the spouse, after much cajoling and complaining, is now able to bring only one bag no matter how long we will be gone. It is easier to schlep around, easier to keep track of, and just easier to manage in general.
2. Buy local. Thanks to airline regulations, there is no temptation to travel with regular-sized bottles of anything since you have a 3 ounce limit for stuff like shampoo, etc. Instead, we carry trial-sized items to start with then replace these at our destination with local purchases of soap/shampoo/toothpaste/etc. This can also go for clothes, shoes, and basically anything else you have need of.
3. Do laundry more often. You can easily travel with fewer clothes if you can wash them often. My choice for laundry ranges from lowest preference (hand washing) to a better option (laundromat), to the best option (paying a local laundry woman a couple of bucks to do it).
4. Go local. Almost any thing you can want/need/choose to do, can be done less expensively if you do as the locals do. Taxi or jeepney? Locals choose the jeepney because it is cheaper. Imported Wisk laundry soap or the local powdery version with a name you can't pronounce? The locals choose the cheaper powdery stuff. Going diving with a nationally known tour company? The locals (actually the expat locals) will go with a hole-in-the-wall place that is cheaper and locally run (the average native local doesn't SCUBA dive as far as I can tell).
5. Eat local too. A food cart or tiny hole-in-the-wall restaurant that is packed with locals is better for a number of reasons. First, it is usually cheaper because it caters to local people's incomes, second the food turns over quickly which is good, hygienically-speaking, and third, if a local restaurant isn't good, it will go out of business pretty quickly.
6. Acclimate yourself. It will save you money on air conditioning (or on the flip side, heating) if you force yourself to acclimate to the local weather. You can tell the tourists by how much time they spend in their (highly) air conditioned hotel rooms or (highly) air conditioned chain bars.
7. Be nice, and useful if possible, to the locals. If they like you and later trust you, you will have some things that money can't buy. Namely local connections you can rely on, opportunities that the average tourist won't have, and local info and insight that will help you save money or in a worst case scenario, save your life.
8. Check your American (or French or fill in the country) attitude at the door. The way you have always done something doesn't mean it is the best/most effective/most appreciated way to do something in your new locale. Watch, listen, and learn. I tend to bite my tongue when it comes to giving advice unless it is asked for or I feel it is a life and death situation.
9. Obviously you will never be a native and based on your skin color, you may stick out like a sore thumb, but you can integrate yourself into the culture to the benefit of everyone (yourself and the locals) if you learn some of the language, learn their manners and customs, and behave respectfully to all.
10. Learn how to haggle. This is a time honored custom in most parts of the world. A lot of people from where this is not done are embarrassed to even try, to their own detriment (and the amusement of the locals). Granted I will haggle for what I feel is a reasonable price but don't drive a super hard bargain because I can afford to pay a bit more than the locals so I feel I should do so.

The corollary to all of this--you don't need a whole lot of stuff to survive virtually anywhere; what you need most is a good attitude and willingness to "go local".

10 Things You're Going to Miss When TSHTF

I just got back from a couple of weeks in Central America. While I didn't get very far away from humanity (there's people everywhere in the small village we stayed in), I did get away from many of the conveniences that people take for granted in the US. So when people complain that America is so terrible and they want to leave, they may want to consider these things that I often miss when I am in a third world country (note that when TSHTF, these items we come to depend on will be similarly lacking in the US):

1. A good plumbing system. This is often taken for granted in the US whether you have a septic system or are connected to city water and sewer. It is common when there is hardly any infrastructure that there is #1--no water sometimes, #2--unpottable water that comes out of the tap all the time, #3--toilets/make shift sewer systems that empty into lakes/rivers/the street.
2. The comforts associated with a good plumbing system. In many of these countries, restrooms may be a hole in the floor or you may have to pay to use them or you may have to just go where ever you can. Things like stalls, toilet seats, toilet paper, and sometimes even the toilet are considered luxuries. Ditto things like running water (hot running water is indeed a luxury!). And don't even think about flushing so much as toilet paper since it will probably clog up what system is there.
3. Privacy. I like holing up in my house and doing my own thing when I feel like it. Being social here is a choice and usually involves advanced scheduling. Not there...people are everywhere and they find it odd if you want to be alone. Also, most of society is built on social relationships--who you know can be as serious bonus for everything from getting utilities hooked up to getting out of jail should the need arise.
4. A general sense of health. We are used to people being generally healthy and at least vaccinated in the US. Third world medicine is, um, lacking to say the least. Many of the people in the village have never received a single vaccination, sanitation is sadly lacking, disease is not uncommon (watching someone turn purple with Dengue Fever is not pleasant), and medical care is cheap by our standards but on the flip side, if people can't afford medical care, they simply don't get it. They can die on the clinic's doorstep if they can't afford to pay (and many can't).
5. A general sense of safety. We know that there are some places in the US that can be unsafe (various locations in LA, Chicago, and NYC come to mind) but overall, most people have an innate sense of safety where they live and work. Law enforcement is effective, corruption is minimal, and the looming possibility of robbers/bandits/drug cartel flunkies/etc are far from the norm of your daily life. Not so in many countries that lack infrastructure. Law enforcement is either lacking or corrupt, there is always the possibility of crime, and, while the places may not be as bad a Somalia, the general sense is of danger.
6. Electricity is nice and quite common in the US. Flip a switch and barring a storm or other malfunction which is quickly fixed, you will get power. Not so in poor countries. Power is often spotty and subject to brownouts/blackouts, if it is even available.
7. A general sense of order. We take it for granted that sidewalks are the same everywhere, the rise in stairs is standardized, problems get fixed by whichever municipality is on call, we can avoid being too hot or too cold, people behave a certain way, etc. All of these expectations go out the window when there is no one to provide order or the services we have come to expect. Sidewalks can be of all levels and materials (even within the same block), street can be made out of mud, workers can work at frighteningly slow paces, kids can be begging on the streets, craters in the road or dangling power lines are passed at your own risk, etc. Kind of keeps you on your toes...
8. A safety net. In very poor countries, people are poor. And poor there is nowhere near like poor here. In the US we have a variety of safety nets: food stamps, homeless shelters, charities that provide free clothing and sundries, hospitals ERs that must treat you, free vaccinations, welfare programs, retraining programs, et al. Poor countries have none of these things (or they are extremely limited like charity medical programs), and you are basically on your own to scrounge up what food you can find or you don't eat, what shelter you can find or you get rained on, etc.
9. Options. We have a lot of options here that people in third world countries don't have. Like choosing a job you want instead of taking anything you can get. Like moving to a warmer/cooler area or an area with better prospects. Like choosing where to live instead of being stuck in your barrio for life. Like being able to improve your education/job skills/earning potential/etc. Like being regarded based on your merits not things you can't choose like looks, family, race, income, etc.
10. Efficient, effective supply chains. I like being able to buy anything I want, any time I want in the US. There is literally nothing I can't have, and have quickly, should I have the need/desire to buy it. Supply chains in poor countries can be complicated to say the least. Often mail systems preclude ordering online and local stores may find it difficult/impossible to carry the things you want/need.

Well that's the down side. I actually had a great vacation and connected with lots of interesting people but it was a very good reminder of how relatively organized/efficient/effective the US is at doing many things that we take for granted.

p.s. Should TSHTF, all of the above items could easily become commonplace in the US.

Radio Silence: 09 OCT-23 OCT

I'm off on a well deserved vacation. I intend to get as far away from civilization as possible which means no cell phone, no internet, no TV, no email, no tweets, no blog posts, no website updates, and no one calling me about work-related matters which is probably the best part of the whole vacation. So, this will be a very inactive blog until 23 October when I should have some interesting posts to publish. See ya then. Web

The (Survivalist's) Hierarchy of Needs

Maslow made man's 'hierarchy of needs' famous by pointing out what each person needs to be a complete human being. Here's the CNI 'Hierarchy of Needs' for the survivalist:

1) Water. Without water, you would be dead within a few days. Water is basically free during normal times but if TSHTF, if you have nothing else, you may want to have some water stocked.
2) Food. You can do without most other things but you do need food. Preferably an assortment (prevents those nasty diseases such as scurvy and goiter). You can be living under a tree in rags but you do need food. Stock some of this as well.
3) Clothing. Appropriate clothing. You're going to wear something anyway so make sure it will work in a wide range of situations. Sturdy pants, shirt, shoes, socks, maybe a jacket.
4) Shelter. You can sleep outside but that offers very little in the way of protection from the elements, at least, and protection from predators, at most.
5) Things that protect your health. Such as vaccinations, soap for keeping you and the things you eat from clean, bleach to keep your environment clean, etc.
6) Things that protect you. Your own personal protection is definitely among the top things when it comes to actual needs. A gun is nice, but so is a sturdy lock for your door, a fire alarm for your home, or a sock filled with rocks or a crow bar to wield as a weapon.
7) Things that add to your comfort. This can be everything from an extra blanket to a cell phone to connect your with loved ones or the police to toilet paper.
8) Things that can keep you entertained. An iPod is nice but so is a book. Once your basic needs are met, the rest is gravy.

From there you can expand. You may want to include transportation, although your feet will work fine in many cases. You may want to add in socialization opportunities. All you really need to survive, as I have learned from countless refugees and immigrants all over the world, is really quite basic: water, food, and clothing. An intangible such as belief or hope for something better is also right up at the top of their list as well.
A step up from the basics would include shelter and things to protect/enhance your health and safety. Once the basics are taken care of, you can move on to things that aren't as critical but still quite welcome including things that enhance your comfort and keep you entertained.
On a side note, almost all of these things can be found free in our society.

What Hapens When You Can't Connect Electronically?

I received a short comment on the last blog post I wrote about electronic communications from a reader. Their question was simply, how do you communicate when all communications system go down?
Here's my answer. Note how limited your alternatives are when the communications systems that we have come to depend on don't work.

• HAM radio. Time and again, when there is a major disaster, HAM radio usually becomes the only way to communicate. I highly recommend that everyone become certified, at least at the most basic technician level, to use a HAM radio and then go out and buy a basic radio.
• Computer/internet. If you have power to your computer (a laptop with a battery or a generator), and to your modem/router there is a possibility that your internet provider will have a back-up battery system which will allow them to continue to provide internet service as long as the battery holds out.
• 2-way FRS radios. These are the radios that you can buy in a set at Walmart that have a short one to two mile range. Families often use these for communications when they are on vacation out in the woods, on a cruise ship, or other places where regular cell service isn't available.
• Cell phone/texting. Even when the power is out, your cell phone may still work. Most cell towers have some sort of battery back-up so that the tower can still work, at least for a few hours after power has been lost. Note that if cell circuits are overloaded, as they probably will be right after a disaster, you may still be able to send a text message through.
• Your own two feet. I was recently invited to observe a full scale disaster exercise at a large company. The scenario was an earthquake which took out all power and communications among other things. As soon as the exercise started, the phones in the EOC (Emergency Operations Center) started ringing off the hook. People in the EOC would pick up the phone and say "this is a drill, the phones are not working". The people on the other end of the line would then ask how they were supposed to communicate with the EOC if they couldn't call. Simple, the Emergency Management Team members would say, send a runner to the EOC with your information. It hadn't dawned on most of the people in this large complex of buildings that should the power go out and if they didn't have radios, they will be literally walking to get the things/news/information they need.
• Written messages. Long before cell phones, and even before CBs became popular, our preferred method of communicating with people that we had plans to meet with up in the mountains were simple signs, written with a black marker on a white paper plate, tacked to a tree. If you have no power and no services and no communications for an extended period of time, that may need to be an option for you too. Basic signs can be pre-staged in your home. Messages can range from OK to NEED HELP to NEED WATER, or other messages that you are likely to use during a disaster. The bigger the letters and the more contrast in the color, the easier it will be for others to see.

In an emergency, you can send a runner, or run yourself, to the local fire department/police department/hospital/road department office/other critical infrastructure location which is likely to have emergency communications equipment. Remember, however, that these agencies really do not want to see people flooding their location during a disaster. They will be busy mounting their own emergency response and unless it is literally a life or death situation, your needs will pale in comparison to that of the community at large, so only do this in a dire emergency.

Connect Online...Here's How

I do almost everything online these days. Here's how I keep connected:

• I keep up with the kids and grand kids using FaceBook. I opened this account with a new GMail address because I didn't want to compromise the contact list of my regular email program. The platform seems too "chatty" for me but I do learn quite a lot about their lives that I otherwise wouldn't have known.
• I use email for nearly all of my communications. I have a variety of accounts for a variety of purposes. Yahoo mail, Hotmail, Gmail, and Hushmail are some good services. I rarely use the email through my ISP or web hosts as I have crashed Outlook far too many times to rely on it.
• I use Skype on occasion for "face to face" communication and when my cell phone service doesn't work but I have internet access.
• I use Chikka to contact friends and business associates in Asia.
• I use text messaging through my cell phone more and more although almost no one my age texts. Younger people, however, can't survive without texting from what I have seen.
• I mainly use my cell phone however I do still keep a land line which I could use with a hardwired phone during an emergency.
• When possible, and in areas that Chikka doesn't reach, I often send text messages to people's cell phones through my regular email program (ie: if someone you know has Verizon cellular service you can email them at XXXXXXXXXX@vtext.com with the XXs being their entire cell number).
• Depending on which country I am trying to contact, local cell providers may have websites through which you can send text messages or web messages (this seems to be quite hit or miss in developing areas).
• With some business friends who travel often, I find that we use Twitter and blog comments quite a bit to communicate.
• I always carry an "unlocked" cell phone with me when I travel overseas. As soon as I land, I buy a SIM card and a "load" from the local cellular provider and then I have cell service which is much cheaper than using your state-side cell service overseas.

Government Economics in Three Easy Lessons

Many people think that if there is a government program (everything from welfare to the "Cash for Clunkers" rebates to Medicare and more), that somehow they are entitled to it. After all, if everyone else is getting "free" money from the government, they want theirs too. Here is how government economics really works, and you don't need an economics degree to understand this:
#1--The government does not make money. Read that sentence a couple of times. The government only collects money in the form of taxes from YOU and everyone else in this country.
#2--Every program, every rebate, every stimulus act, EVERYTHING the government spends money on is simply done by taking your tax money and everyone else's tax money and putting it into various pots. There is a Medicaid pot, there is a defense spending pot, there is a national parks pot, there is about a million other pots of money all appropriated by the government, but don't forget that all of this money is YOUR tax money. The government didn't earn any money to give to these programs, it simply took the money that you and everyone else paid in taxes and arranged it into these pots of money to fund various government spending programs.
#3--Now, when you sign up for a government program, when you use Medicare, when you participate in a stimulus program, when you ask "where is my check from the government??", it isn't "government" money you are getting. It is money from you, your family, your friends, your neighbors, and every other tax-paying person in the country that you are taking from.

Obviously that is an oversimplification of the process but it works for illustrative purposes. There are other things I didn't include--government borrowing (China appreciates our business a great deal), government investments, etc--however the point is the same. Every time you see the government giving free money and you see people who are partaking of these government programs, note that is is your money they are using. This is exactly why every time a new stimulus program is started or every time a government program is being used to fund a bridge in Alaska or some other boneheaded program, I cringe. This is my money they are using. If the government wrote up their budget like I write up my monthly family budget, I am certain it would look quite different. I don't want to help someone buy a car. A car is something each individual needs to plan and save for. I would give a bit to national parks, I would give more to defense spending because I feel that is one of the main responsibilities of the government, I would spend some to take care of the very old and the very sick. Obviously everyone has their own ideas about which things are important to spend money on and which things aren't, but the next time you are enticed by a government program, stop to think about whether or not you would spend your own money on it.

If you really want to be annoyed at the way your money is being spent, check out this article.

Want to Get Out of Debt and Get Rich? Let Dave Ramsey Show You How

I had an extra couple of days to spend in Atlanta and was fortunate enough to have been given a couple of tickets to the Dave Ramsey show this afternoon when a client/friend was unable to attend. While I have listened to Dave Ramsey on the radio for years and watched his show almost daily when it was on the Fox Business channel, I had never seen him in person.
He had a pretty good-sized audience at today's event and was a pretty engaging speaker. He is the kind of no nonsense guy that I grew up with years ago. Lots of common sense, spoken at higher and higher decibels until you clearly 'got it.'. Kind of the no-BS type of approach that is sadly missing from today's "kinder, gentler" world where you would rather let people do stupid things instead of correcting them because you might hurt their feelings.
Anyway, the gist of his presentation is how to get out of debt and build wealth with a few simple steps...
#1--set aside $1000 for your starter emergency fund
#2--pay off debt with the debt snowball, starting with your smallest to largest debts
#3--fully fund your emergency fund in the amount of six month's living expenses
#4--invest 15% of your income in Roth IRAs and other pre-tax retirement plans
#5--fund your children's college education
#6--pay off your home as quickly as possible
#7--build wealth and give
Those are paraphrased, of course. For a complete explanation of what he calls the 'baby steps', click here.

Some of this stuff sounds near impossible if you are currently drowning in debt, but it is amazing how fast you can work through these steps when you are super intense and motivated. It is also amazing how you can do something as huge as paying for your kids college or paying your house off early when right now you can barely see past your monthly debt payments, but, just think of how much money you would have if you didn't have any debts to pay when your check comes in each week. A nice thought isn't it? Find out more about Dave Ramsey here.

10 Things I Always Take With Me When I Travel

It's been a whirlwind month of travel with about a month and a half left to go. Here's ten things I always take with me when I travel:

1. One bag. Only. After years of schlepping luggage, I switched to carrying only one small carry on bag when I travel and I couldn't be happier (my back is much happier too).
2. A netbook. I wish I could just carry an iPod Touch or iPad when I travel in order to access the internet but unfortunately the specialized software I need to use when I travel won't work on either of those smaller devices. A netbook works just like a regular laptop/desktop but saves pounds and pounds of weight.
3. A Kiva daypack. When I leave my backpack behind and just head out for the day, I put the few items I need in a Kiva daypack which folds up ultra small when not in use and weights only a couple of ounces.
4. Acidophilous. One of the best all around cures for stomach upset due to eating food and water to which your body is not accustomed to.
5. Cash and debit cards. I don't use credit cards. Ever. Rather, I carry some cash and have three debit cards (with the Visa or MasterCard logo) from three separate bank accounts (separate banks as well) with plenty of cash in each account to cover any contingency. Using these cards to withdraw cash from foreign ATMs works much better than carrying and converting travelers checks.
6. Minimal toiletries. I start out my trips with basic mini-sized toiletries then pick up additional supplies as I go. Most places--in fact ALL places--that your average traveler will go feature methods for brushing your teeth, washing your hair, etc. Plus its interesting to use foreign products just to see how they work. Unless I am going way, way out in the boonies (where the ability to pick up toothpaste for example would be difficult or impossible in which case I bring lots of extra of these items to give as gifts), I figure that I would rather risk using a local product than bringing full-sized anything.
7. A Fisher space pen. It only takes having your ink pen explode in your bag a couple of times to make you remember to bring a pen that won't leak.
8. Business cards. There are many times on the road when you want to exchange information with other people. Business cards make it easier, and more accurate depending on how legible your handwriting is, to provide this information to others.
9. A small flashlight. Brownouts and blackouts are much more common in developing countries. I use my flashlight a lot when I am in those sorts of places.
10. Excellent walking shoes, sox, and underwear. I can wear the same pair of pants or shirt for a month if necessary, but I like to be able to wear clean underwear and sox daily. And anyone who has walked any distance in cheap/ill-fitting/just-wrong-for-you shoes can attest to the goodness that is an exceptional pair of shoes.