Would You Cancel Your Life Insurance Policy?

I was recently invited by some neighbors to talk about "how to start preparing".   I was excited to share what I knew to help them.   Their motivation was very valid and paralleled many others in the prepping community with regard to why do we prep.  I have reconciled and confirmed in my mind that responsible people take actions to take care of, protect, and provide for the ones they love. 

 To assure others that maybe asking themselves the same questions,  “Do I need to begin preparing for _________?" (fill in the blank)   If you are responsible for yourself  or others, then the answer is a resounding, Yes!  To exemplify how a doubter may reach the same level of certainty, let me give you a very boring comparison. . . Insurance.

If you have a home, do you have home owner’s insurance?  Why?

Answer: to provide a means of replacing items lost or rebuilding if your house was destroyed.  You don’t plan on anything happening, but you’re responsible.  You prepare just in case something bad were to happen.

What does responsibility mean as it relates to preparedness? 
Life insurance, car insurance, home insurance, renter’s insurance, health insurance, unemployment insurance, even alien abduction insurance (It’s true.  Look it up)   All of this insurance is very boring to most people, but we tolerate it because it is necessary.  We usually educate ourselves enough to get the right amount to protect us after a harmful situation or provide for those we care about.  We’re responsible by having the right types of insurance and the right amount of coverage.

Prepping for a natural or man-made disaster is no different.  
We don’t know what will happen, if it will happen, or when it will happen.   It’s gaining knowledge and taking action to provide and protect yourself and those you care about just in case something bad happens.  You don’t know if your house will burn to the ground or be washed away or just have a few shingles blow off by a thunder storm, but you consider all the options when you choose to protect your home.   Creating a preparedness plan to protect your family in its essence, is no different at all.

While working in human resources, sometimes I have to get involved when an employee or an  employee’s wife or husband unfortunately dies.  One of the first steps I take is to verify what amount of life insurance the person had to get the claim started right away.  It is heart-wrenching to find out they have no policy, no coverage.   Was this person that tragically died a responsible person?  Only the surviving family could answer that question.  Please don’t respond that I’m trying to compare a life insurance policy to replacing an actual life.  That’s moronic and absurd!   The only thing a person can do to prepare for death is to provide a means that would insure the continuance of the lives of the family they loved. 

Don’t cancel your life insurance policy.  Don’t delay in preparing to protect and provide for your family in case of disaster.  Both are acts of care and responsibility.

28 Days Later Equals SHTF

Does the movie 28  Days Later really relate to prepping and survivalism?  Probably more that you think.

I enjoy the zombie craze over recent years and have seen many of the movies.  Some are way better than others, trust me.  After you watch and enjoy these types of movies for the entertainment value, I'd encourage my readers to go back and watch again from an analytical perspective of what's happening, who survives, how do individuals and the public react would all be questions to look for answers to. 

Considering that "Zombies" are a symbolic representation of any type of SHTF situation, you can apply many of the lessons learned and character failures as a lesson for prepping and surviving a catastrophic or less than catastrophic event.

Below is a list of some similarities that I think will be shared  when SHTF.

Change in Our Immediate Reality
First, there will be a shock factor where people will find themselves in a mental vacuum of not comprehending what has occurred.  Watch news footage of real people respond to horrific events such as 911 and natural disasters.  They cannot fathom that a skyscraper just completely collapsed several blocks away, so there mind goes blank and their reaction slows.  Many interviews after a tornado or television scenes after someone opens fire in a public setting all demonstrate the "I didn't know what was happening" reaction.  There will be a significant change in our reality  that we will need to respond to.

Cities are a Danger Zone
Large to medium sized cities and metropolitan areas will become chaotic exponentially faster than other sparse areas.  Everything bad will be magnified in these areas whether it is a flu virus, MERS, SARS or other communicable disease simply due to the number of concentrated people.  The effects of a natural disasters as well as a simple blackout will erupt in the city.  Metro preppers should have a solid plan to shelter in place or evacuate at the first inkling of trouble.

Warnings Signs Do Occur
In the movie, 28 Days, the main character Jim simply wakes up after the virus has spread throughout Great Britain.  Unlike this movie scene, too often there are warning signs days (or even longer) before something is going to go down.  Preppers are generally tuned in to news and watchful for indicators.  This holds true for a hurricane, snow storm, or even an earthquake if you think about it.  Most people aren't watching the growing number of seismic activity events as a sign of possible earthquake in a nearby area, but the signs are there is one is paying attention.   There are also warning signs for an economic collapse or a CME (coronal mass ejection).  We just have to know where to get the information, understand it, and prepare as best we are able.

There Aren't Any Know It All's
Some people are just going to be more prepared and better equipped or higher skilled to deal with and survive various situations.  It's an important part of effective prepping to realize this and work to identify and connect through relationships with these groups.  The 'lone wolf' survivalist has much greater odds of failure than someone in a family or group in the same situation.

Many military and former military serving in foreign countries can tell stories and describe real SHTF situations with enemies and the way people generally react in bad situations.  They make a great resource for us to understand first hand so we can be better prepared.  Short of that, I've often quoted Oscar Wilde in that "life imitates art", so unless you have been in, around, or through a real SHTF problem, cinematic art may give the rest of us a glimpse into what it could be like.

Thanks!

Get Home Bag Evaluation

This morning, I quickly came upon stopped traffic on Interstate 40 in rural TN.   A tractor trailer had overturned blocking both lanes and the radio confirmed a 2-hour wait to open the road. The median was too steep to cross over and I was far between exits to get off the road.  STUCK!

This was a good test for my GHB that stays in the trunk.  Preppers and survivalist often refer to Bug Out Bags (BOB’s) for the primary purpose of leaving a location quickly.  I’ve reconciled that I won’t be able to bug out so mine has almost identical contents but is referred to as a Get Home Bag (GHB).  Both usually contain about 3 days worth of food, water and other items to live uncomfortably for a short period and can be carried on your back.

No matter if you don’t believe in potential apocalyptic or SHTF events, it makes good sense to have these items in your car just in case the zombies attack your family from the roadside Stuckey’s as you pull in to fill up or you get stopped dead (no pun intended) on the interstate for 2 or more hours while on vacation.

Here’s what I had and what its possible use could be:

Part of my EDC:

·        Keltec P3AT and 7 rounds

·        iPhone 5 fully charged

·        Small Bic lighter (even though I don't smoke)

·        Chapstick (lips and fire starter)

·        Gerber Paraframe locking knife

·        Mini key chain light

·        Wallet w/ ID and cash

·        Watch

·        Paracord bracelet

Items Stowed in an inexpensive Outdoor Research pack from Walmart.

·        Quart of water and an extra 16 oz bottle in my computer bag

·        3 packs of honey

·        Bag of Jack Link’s beef jerky

·        Map of Tennessee

·        Silva compass

·        Small multi-tool

·        Roll of TP

·        3 medium sized carabiners

·        Lighter, matches, ferrous rod

·        Tinder for about 5 fires

·        Fishing kit in an empty medicine bottle

·        Small sewing kit from Vegas hotel

·        2 Flashlights w/ extra batteries

·        Off Deep Woods bug spray (2.5 oz)

·        50’ paracord

·        2 Glo-Sticks

·        Road flare (signaling or firestarting)

·        Red & Black sharpie pen

·        Hand-crank radio/flashlight

·        30spf sunscreen  (1oz)

·        25 yards of black duct tape

·        Small first aid kit w/ EMT scissors

·        Hand sanitizer (travel size)

·        60 rounds of .380 ammo in pack

·        4 large binder clips for securing shelter

·        Old cd for signaling with shiny side

·        Rain poncho

·        Kukri machete

·        Large HD 50 gal. garbage bag

·        Leather work gloves

·        Coleman camp shovel with pick (digging, chopping, or as a weapon)

·        2 bottles of whiskey (airplane size) for bartering or calming nerves or antiseptic

·        Fleece pullover top (still gets in the 50’s at night)

·        Extra pair of socks

·        Camouflage tarp (7x9) for shelter

·        50degree sleeping bag

·        Merrill hiking boots

All items weigh less than 25 pounds

How Much is Enough?

Upon doing some research this morning, I found several "lists" of items scattered from website to website.  Lists are good in general and are even better to create and develop a prepardness mindset.  I've got several of them myself.   Understanding the writers intention may have simply been to provide some items to collect, one of the more important things that was missing were the quantities or amounts.  That got me thinking.

When a list has ammunition, obviously you want your preps to be in the caliber firearms you have, but how much do you need?  How much do you want?  These are two separate things and "a lot" is probably not the best answer.  Honestly, I am one of those people that can never have enough ammo, but back to the point.  Need? To answer this question, begin calculating how many people in your family will have firearms in a SHTF situation.  Then, how many guns will they have?  My son just got a new shotgun recently for Christmas, so now I have to add his 12 ga. as an extra and get the additional ammo to meet the need for another weapon.  Based on my training, round usage, fire discipline, and accuracy, my ammo starting point (Need) is in the 500 rounds per weapon at the minimum.  My "want" is closer to 2000+ rounds to practice and have a little fun with.

This exercise will work for just about every item in your SHTF supplies.  I recently conducted a burn test for my make shift oil lamps and candles I bought at a bargain.  Here's what I found....a 10" tapered candle has a burn time of about 50 minutes per inch, so I got 8-9 hours of light from one candle.  There are roughly four to five hours of darkness each night in which we are awake.  1 candle would last 2 nights; 15 candles would last 30 days; minimum light in a room requires about 4 candles per person; 4 people in my family, so approximately 240-250 candles would last 30 days at a minimum level.  So now you know the answer to how many candles do I need.  There's a much longer burn test for oil lamps, but the process is the same to determine how much oil (kerosene) do you need.

To get from a need amount to a want amount can involve using logic in the examples above, using estimates since I've never been in a SHTF situation,  and it also involves emotion.  This is what I refer to as the "I feel like I've got enough" amount.

The emotional piece of preparing can be an obstacle at times and get me distracted on one particular item or a single category.  We just have to recognize it and use it appropriately.  Experienced preppers know that well-rounded and diverse prep items and lists are much better than a swimming pool full of water but nothing to go with it.  So if you're prepping from an emotional standpoint, lose the tunnel vision and broaden your viewpoint by using some math and logic.

Final note, when calculating your "Need" and "Want" amounts, don't forget about potential barter.  A few extra candles, a quart of kerosene, a box of the cheap maccaroni/chees, or some extr 2-liter bottles of water can make a bad situation just a little better for you and others.

The Romance of Bugging Out

It's not hard to see how survivalists and preppers are attracted to bugging out during a catestrophic event.  Heck, there's even a TV show titled, "Doomsday Bunkers"  where they have acres and acres of land in a remote location.   Hollywood has portrayed bugging out in many movies and continues to fuel the romance.  Lone Wolf characters in "Book of Eli" and "I Am Legend" make me want to be like them.  Then after the movie credits finish rolling off the screen, REALITY hits.  Dang it!

For most preppers having a Bug Out Location [BOL] just isn't an option.  First and foremost, it requires valuable resources.  Either land, a dwelling of some sort, or a very close friend or family that would be willing to accept you and your family in a SHTF situation.  Like I said,  these are very rare for most preparness minded people.

In the short term,  I have reconciled to Bugging In or Sheltering In Place in my current home.  It's a 2-story, 4 bedroom standard suburban looking house in a neighborhood of about 175 homes.  So how do you develop a close network or support group of like-minded neighbors while maintaining Operational Security [OP-SEC] and build your prepping items and skills all at the same time?

OP-SEC is paramount in this type of situation.  174 hungry neighbors could pretty much do whatever they wanted and short of a heavily armed entrenchment, you'd never be able to stop them from taking everything. The 2 biggest dangers to blow your cover are #1 - Open garage doors,  and #2 - mouthy neighbor kids that come over all the time.  Our 2 kids know what we have in general terms and it's for the case of a big snow storm or if the lights go out for a couple of days.  They also know through consistent encouragement and reminding not to tell anyone about water, food, ammo, or even the amount of toilet paper that our family has on site.  Earlier on as we got started, the mouthy kids forced us to relocate our pantry and shift our water supply to closets and other closed off rooms.  It's been over a year now, and no kid has said, "I'm coming to your house when the Zombies come!" in a long time.

Before prepping, the garage door would stay open all day on a Saturday while I was working outside.  Maybe even overnight by a mistake every now and then.  Now it's closed.  In and out.  Up and down.  That's it.  We've done it for so long now, it's just habit.  Another benefit, is that it saves money on heating and cooling too.

Lastly, I've been reviewing the lay of the land for our neighborhood.  Ingress, egress, flow of traffic, choke points, surrounding land features, sectors of fire, etc., trying to anticipate what a SHTF situation might mean for staying put.  Other ideas for security might include installing door bars in your home, planting rose bushes under the windows, knowing how to build barb wire obstacles, considering what else can be used to stop or slow entry into your home, and barricading neighborhood entery points.  Thinking and preparing now provides a greater comfort level with Sheltering In Place as the option to Bugging Out. 

12 Categories - Continued

Finishing up with the other 6 on my way to Mobile, Alabama (flying, not driving). No blogging and driving for me.  Many of my top 12 categories will clearly overlap and show some duplicity.

No. 7 - Knowledge/Skills.  Many early preppers will think of this asset as being limited to tactical SHTF related skills.  I'll have to admit they do make for a good movie to have McGyver like skills from a paperclip and shoestring.  But more experienced preppers have learned that the "boring" skills like gardening, fishing, and meditation are real skills that sustain life and survival tolerance.

No. 8 - Safety.  This is a little different from Security which was  mentioned earlier as No. 5.  The safety category contains more ideas and and items for maintaing physical health.

No. 9 - Threat Specific.  Several components of can easily be included in the No. 1 Priority category, but let me attempt to differentiate them.  Preparing for a house or apartment fire is a little differnt and much more unique than preparing for a grid down scenario. or hurrican evacuation.  They certainly share many similarities, but for obvious reasons should include prepardness items unique to the threat.

No. 10 - Equipment/Tools.  As a former Boy Scout and outdoor enthusiast, I know this is the one the a lot of preppers fall in love with, so it needs to clearly fit in the right order and priority to avoid spending a lot of money on all the wrong things at the wrong time and for the wrong reason.

No. 11 - Travel.   Freedom and ability to move with an acceptable risk or danger during an event or to avoid a threat is a great way to create alternative and contingency preparedness plans.  There will be local, mid-range and long-range, one-way and round-trip assessments to read about in the near future.

No. 12 - Communication.  Somebody had to be last, needless to say not the least.  Communicating within hours of an event are very important to survival.  In a longer term situation, communication can also help keep you from going crazy by interacting with family and friends.

12 Categories that Must Be a Part of Your Prepardness Plan

Sunday's are a pretty relaxing time for our family and I get a chance to review some prepper sites and watch some YouTube videos for research and further our knowledge.   Often, I get pretty easily distracted and find myself just wandering from prepper thought to prepper thought.   So far, I've written a couple of posts on APN, looked at craigslist for barter items and cheap water barrels, created a medicine bottle fishing kit, and even a little research on fish antibiotics.   I seriously hope that I'm not the only one in this category.

Then the reason and purpose for starting the Dark Cloud Survival blog hit me!  This tool was to help me learn and get better at a personal level (and maybe help someone else too).  Here are my twelve priorities I'll work to develop and expand with some detail in the very near future.

No. 1 - Determine YOUR Priorities.  As described in the previous post, this will properly determine what you do first and set the stage for what should follow.  Give some serious thought, organize, and write it down.

No. 2 - Water.  For most people, this will be the common denominator for sustaining life in the immediate future after an event or threat.  It's extremely cheap right now.  Easy to store and practically can be stored indefinitely.

No. 3 - Food.  There is a place in prepping for a large variety of types of food and how they currently exist (canned, dehydrated, frozen, etc.).  I've found it practical to simply repeat what we do now.  My wife and I do plan on getting a dehydrator before the year end and experiment with prepared foods.  Our son has a condition which is triggered by preservatives and artificials, so we have to consider that with our food preps.

No. 4 - Shelter.   There seems to be a dramatic and even romantic buzz with those preppers who have a buried shelter or bug out location (BOL).  Even though my family has about 40 acres not to far away, we don't have the funds to invest into making it a fall back location.  We have reconciled bugging in for an immediate response and taking extra measures for security.  For most, your current residence may likely be your bug in location.  That's OK.   Just understand that it is the case and prepare accordingly.

No. 5 - Security.   I recently heard a phrase, "if you can't protect it, then it's not yours."   There is a lot of truth to that.  Although, the area of security can be easily divided into several subcategories to review, protecting yourself, your family, and your property will be a critical element in surviving a wide-spread threat.

No. 6 - Power/Energy.    Our lives are SO dependent upon the immediate and accessible power for darn near everything.  This component will also require some effective thought and evaluation to develop a plan to either do without or do with little.  Yes, the TV show, "American Blackout" was a made for TV drama.  I get that, but you may have heard that "life imitates fiction".  I do believe it was a good stimulator for what it might be like without power for your electric can opener.  Just saying...

I hope these top 6 are close to some of your important preps, but understand that everyone's will vary depending on several factors.  I'll share the rest with you a little later this week and look forward to expanding ideas and getting advice and ideas from the readers.

Have a great week and stay prepared!