Author Archives: Trace Adams

Self-Reliant vs Self-Sufficient

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We tend to use these phrases interchangeably, assuming they mean basically the same thing.

Recently on TSP (episode 754) Jack clearly defined and delineated them. I did a quick Google search and–even though these words previously existed–I believe Jack has created a new prepper definition of these words; Jack Spirko originals, if you will.

Self-Reliance is having stored preps; it’s like having money in a ‘rainy day’ account, or an insurance policy; it just sits there, available if we need it. Jack defined self-reliance as: “a finite resource that’s held in reserve in case another system fails”. We preppers understand this. We all have stockpiles of stuff that we don’t want to use unless we have to; we will only use enough to keep things rotated. In a total TEOTWAWKI most of these items, once they were used up, would no longer be available in their modern forms. Examples, organized into bullets of our five basic needs, include:

  • short and long term food storage, factory canned food, food not locally produced
  • bottled water, chemicals used to purify water
  • toilet paper, clothes, plastic bags
  • ammunition, most pharmacological medicines including antibiotics
  • batteries, flashlights, fuel, light bulbs

Self-Sufficiency is sustainable. Jack defined self-sufficiency as: “it’s own independent system that’s not dependent on someone else’s system . . . even when the system of support is currently available.” This describes the portion of your needs you are able to produce, and use on a daily basis, whether the current systems are in place or not:

  • gardens, livestock, canning and other food preservation
  • wells, septic systems, water filters, rain barrels
  • handmade furniture, handmade quilts
  • bows and arrows, musket balls and powder
  • solar, wind, and/or hydro power

A defining characteristic is how they are measured. Self-reliance is measured in time, it is “finite, it’s wholly self-limiting,” e.g. you have enough food stored for six months, enough batteries for three months, enough water for 30 days. Self-sufficiency is measured by percentages, it is essentially indefinite (for the sake of a human life-cycle), e.g. you can produce 20% of your food needs, produce 30% of your energy needs.

This is not to say that one is better than another, just different. Both, in our typical current worlds, are necessary. Right now the systems are in place; use them, enjoy them, just don’t become overly dependent on them being there forever. Self-reliance is typically the main thing people focus on when they initially move into a prepper mentality. Self-reliance is about stockpiling needed stuff. As we’re building our preps, look toward the goal of self-sufficiency and developing and using skills to produce needed items. Remember to view self-sufficiency as a percentage of our needs, not our wants.

Being self-reliant will give us a buffer to get our self-sufficient skills up to full speed, i.e. using our food storage for the winter and spring, until the gardens begin producing.

As preppers, if we understand these concepts we can use them to help us define our plans and set our goals. As we know–and I discussed in Buying Stuff Is Easy–stuff can be destroyed, taken, left-behind, or lost. But knowledge and skill sets exist as long as you maintain proficiency with them.

(Friday: What I Did This Week To Prep)

P.S. I was using these words interchangeably myself when I initially started my blog. My subtitle under the name ‘Trace My Preps’ said ‘A Prepper / Self-Reliant Blog’. I have now changed it to: ‘My Journey through Self-Reliance into Self-Sufficiency’.

The Hassles of Storing Gasoline

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To become more self-reliant we try to determine what ‘needed’ items to store; one to think about is fuel. Though there are several types of fuel preppers store: gasoline, propane, diesel, and kerosene; gasoline is the hardest to store long-term and, yet, is the most commonly used.

My main reason for storing gasoline is for use in our (gasoline) generator during a power failure. When people believe that disaster is looming–recently during Hurricane Irene, for example–they rush out and buy generators. But how many of them think to store fuel to run those generators? Our Generac 5000 generator has a five gallon fuel tank, it will run approximately five to seven hours on a tank of gasoline. My plan is to use our battery bank (four AGM deep cycle batteries) until depleted, then use the generator to recharge the batteries while still maintaining power to needed appliances. To ensure enough energy to last most power outages we need to store a reasonable amount of gasoline. But couldn’t we just drive to the gas station and get more gasoline? Maybe, but does the gas station have power?

We also want to store gasoline for our vehicles if we had to evacuate; gasoline may either be unavailable (gas station closed because of a power outage) or there may be excessively long lines to get it. We’d also like to have enough gasoline to take with us: to ensure we can reach our BOL, and to use there if power and/or gasoline aren’t available at our destination.

As we’re discussing storage it has to be stressed that gasoline is very flammable and must be stored in an appropriate container in a safe place. It is also relatively heavy–approximately 6.1 pounds per gallon–but at about 30 pounds for five gallons it can still be conveniently handled.

It’s hard to find definitive information about how long gasoline can be stored before it goes bad. But what does ‘bad’ even mean? Gasoline is a refined petroleum-derived chemical which–over time, and compounded by improper storing and temperatures–can break down by:

  • evaporation causing it to lose it’s volatile components (necessary for igniting)
  • drawing in water vapor that can cause separation – where water, since it’s heavier, settles to the bottom of the tank
  • oxidation causing it to become sludgy which can build up inside of small parts *

There are other unknowns, beginning with how old was the gasoline when you bought it (was it fresh from the refinery or already a month old?). What temperatures has it been exposed to and for how long? Was it properly stored by keeping it tightly covered, clean, dry, and cool? So, as a rule of thumb, if you plan to store your gasoline for more than a couple of months you should add a gasoline stabilizer.

The most common brand of stabilizer is Sta-Bil Gas Stabilizer. According to Sta-Bil’s website, using their product will keep fuel fresh for 12 months; you can double the dosage and fuel will remain fresh for 24 months. It’s added at a ratio of one ounce of Stabilizer to 2 1/2 gallons of gasoline. A 32-ounces bottle costs about $12, so it’s roughly $0.40 an ounce, which is only $0.80 for each 5-gallon gasoline can you store. If you store 30 gallons (check with local ordinances on amount you can legally store) it’d cost you less than $5.00 per year.

I add three ounces of Stabilizer (I want an extra buffer) to each 5-gallon container of gasoline (including the generator); we rotate the gasoline every 12 months (each can has a number which correlates with a month, i.e. #3 gets rotated in March). When it’s time to rotate, we just add five gallons into each vehicle’s half-full tank. We’ve found that pouring gas through the pour spout can get heavy and messy. So instead of pouring we use a Super Syphon; it self-primes, it’s easy to use, and it’s affordable. It takes about three minutes to syphon a 5-gallon can.

Plan ahead. If you invest in a generator, you need to have fuel for it. Remember that generator is for an emergency situation; don’t depend on a one that has old, or not enough, gasoline.

(Wednesday: Self-Reliant vs Self-Sufficient)

* Minnesota’s Dept. of Agriculture article Storing Gasoline, has good information on the specific storage problems of weathering, moisture, and oxidation

What I Did This Week To Prep 11/4/11

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We had our first ‘lights out’ drill this week. Unfortunately I can’t call it a success, other than in the sense that we learn from our failures (hopefully).

Coming off the successful test of powering the deep freezer (for over four days), using the batter bank and inverter – I was ready to take the next step. This one was to see how the battery bank would do powering devices inside the house we would like to be able to use during a power outage.

My goal:

  1. Power two lamps, to light the living room / kitchen area, each with two CFL bulbs (compact fluorescent lamp – low energy)
  2. Power our 29 inch TV (older cathode ray tube type) and DVD player
  3. Charge the cell phones
  4. Use the microwave for limited cooking

Outcome:

  1. Batteries were discharged after about 1 1/2 hours of watching the movie (The Sting), and having the lamps on
  2. I forgot to charge the cell phones
  3. The microwave tripped the breaker after less than two minutes

What I learned:

  1. LED flashlights are great; I love our new Duracell Daylite LED two D cell flashlights
  2. Thoroughly check, and be familiar with, your equipment – before the incident
  3. Ensure the battery bank is fully charged
  4. The inverter shuts itself off when the batteries reach 10.50 volts
  5. Buying a quality system and running it through a cheap circuit breaker is dumb

What went well:

  1. Storing the main extension cord near the battery bank (14 gauge, 50 foot)
  2. Taking the opportunity to teach Ryan about the circuit breaker box
  3. Having plenty of accessory extension cords
  4. Once lamps were on (from batteries), putting the flashlights in a central place (easy to find in the dark)

If the power had really been out, we would have fallen back on our redundancy planning and gotten out the lanterns and candles.

The biggest mistake was assuming that since the battery bank, through the inverter, had been plugged in for almost a week that the batteries would be fully charged – so I didn’t think to check first. Yesterday (several days after the drill) I discovered the circuit breaker (a cheap plastic one)–between the batteries and the inverter–had failed and wasn’t allowing the batteries to charge. After seeing that I realized that during our drill our batteries probably weren’t fully charged (likely very low charge to begin with).

I rewired the batteries directly to the inverter (there’s still the inverter’s internal circuit breaker, the external one was a backup) and the batteries immediately began recharging. I’ll order a higher quality circuit breaker this weekend. When the breaker arrives, I’ll do an unofficial drill during the day and see how long the fully charged batteries will run the lamps, TV and DVD player. (Buying stuff is easy, this testing and figuring out is a pain…)

We also transplanted our pepper plants (one jalapeno and one habanero) from the garden into pots so we could bring them into the house for the winter. I hadn’t known until recently that peppers, in their natural habitat, are perennials; we think of them as annuals because our winters get too cold for them to survive. Next year we’ll just put the pot outside for the summer. So instead of starting with brand new plants again, we’ll have mature ones and see how they do. As a baseline, this year we got three, very mild, jalapenos and no habaneros at all.

Lastly, we had budgeted money for buying fish antibiotics this month. So I ordered AQUA-MOX (amoxicillin 500 mg, 100 capsules), AQUA-FLEX (cephalexin 500mg, 100 capsules) and AQUA-ZOLE (metronidazole 250mg, 100 tablets). I stored them away in a cool, dry, dark location in their original containers.

What did you do?

(Monday: The Hassles of Storing Gasoline)

(10/30/11)

Expired, or Not Expired… Can You Store Medications Long Term?

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What medications* do we keep in our preps? We store: 1) over-the-counter (OTC) drugs: ibuprofen (Motrin), acetaminophen (Tylenol), aspirin, diphenhydramine (Benadryl), pseudoephedrine (Sudafed), loratadine (Claritin), guaifenesin (Mucinex), and 2) antibiotics (that I recently posted about): amoxicillin, cephalexin, ciprofloxacin, doxycycline, metronidazole.

How long can they be stored? They have expiration dates, does that mean they go bad?

Let’s start with what do drug expiration dates mean? Required since 1979, the expiration date is the last date that the pharmaceutical company will guarantee 100% potency (some sources state at least 90% potency). So then we ask, how long does it take a drug to lose it’s beneficial effects?

That is the question that the Department of Defense (DOD) asked the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 1985 (the military had over a billion dollars worth of medication stored). So in response, in 1986, the DOD and the FDA began the Shelf Life Extension Program (SLEP).

The SLEP program is documented in the Wall Street Journal article, Many Medicines Are Potent Years Past Expiration Dates, by Laurie P. Cohen, March 28, 2000. The military submitted, and the FDA has evaluated, over 100 drugs – prescription and OTC. The results showed that about 90% of them were safe and effective well past their expiration dates, some for 10 years or longer. Joel Davis, a former FDA expiration-date compliance chief, said that with a handful of exceptions – notably nitroglycerin, insulin and some liquid antibiotics – most expired drugs are probably effective.

In light of these results, a former [FDA] director of the testing program, Francis Flaherty, says he has concluded that expiration dates put on by manufacturers typically have no bearing on whether a drug is usable for longer.

Mr. Flaherty notes that a drug maker is required to prove only that a drug is still good on whatever expiration date the company chooses to set. The expiration date doesn’t mean, or even suggest, that the drug will stop being effective after that, nor that it will become harmful.

“Manufacturers put expiration dates on for marketing, rather than scientific, reasons,” said Mr. Flaherty, a pharmacist at the FDA until his retirement in 1999. “It’s not profitable for them to have products on a shelf for 10 years. They want turnover.”

The Harvard Medical School Family Health Guide, in Drug Expiration Dates – Do They Mean Anything?, notes that, with rare exceptions, “it’s true the effectiveness of a drug may decrease over time, but much of the original potency still remains even a decade after the expiration date”.

Where and how medications are stored is an important factor in minimizing their degradation. Storing in a cool, dry, dark place will maximize their lifespan; when possible keep sealed in their original container until ready to use. Medications stored in bathroom cabinets or shelves could have effectiveness significantly reduced. Be sure to discard any pills that become discolored, turn powdery, or smell overly strong; any liquids that appear cloudy or filmy; or any tubes of cream that are hardened or cracked.

Dr. Bones, from The Doom and Bloom Show, states in his blog post, The Truth About Expiration Dates, “I put forth to you this recommendation: Do not throw away medications that are in pill or capsule form after their expiration dates if you are stockpiling for a collapse. Even if a small amount of potency is lost after time, they will be of use when we no longer have the ability to mass-produce these medicines. I’m aware that this is against the conventional medical wisdom, but we may find ourselves in a situation one day where something is better than nothing.”

(Friday: What I Did This Week To Prep)

* The terms medications and drugs (referring to legal drugs) are used interchangeably.

Post Script: Dealing With The ‘Tetracycline Becomes Toxic’ Myth

There has long been a belief that the antibiotic tetracycline becomes toxic once it has past it’s expiration date.

In Medscape Today’s article, Do Medications Really Expire?, they discusses the original case, “A contested example of a rare exception [of expired drugs possibly becoming toxic] is a case of renal tubular damage purportedly caused by expired tetracycline (reported by G. W. Frimpter and colleagues in JAMA, 1963;184:111). This outcome (disputed by other scientists) was supposedly caused by a chemical transformation of the active ingredient.”

The case was thoroughly evaluated in the 1978 article, Tetracycline in a Renal Insufficiency: Resolution of a Therapeutic Dilemma, it states, “”Old” and degraded tetracyclines have previously been demonstrated to have direct toxic effects on the renal proximal tubule, but because of changes in manufacturing techniques this is no longer a real problem.” It also states, “It has often been stated that the tetracyclines should be avoided in patients with severe renal disease, but, as we shall see, doxycycline represents an important exception to the rule”.

In Cohen’s article on the Shelf Life Extension Program, Many Medicines Are Potent Years Past Expiration Dates, it goes on to state, “Only one report known to the medical community linked an old drug to human toxicity. A 1963 Journal of the American Medical Association article said degraded tetracycline caused kidney damage. Even this study, though, has been challenged by other scientists. Mr. Flaherty says the Shelf Life program encountered no toxicity with tetracycline”.

Dr. Bones and Nurse Amy, from The Doom and Bloom Show, when interviewed on TSP, clearly state that tetracycline past it’s expiration date is safe (episode 736, beginning at 43:45). Nurse Amy concludes the topic with “. . . if they can just get that in their heads that tetracycline isn’t going to kill you when it’s past expiration”.

Medical evidence supports that tetracycline, past it’s expiration date–especially in the form of doxycycline–is as safe as any other expired antibiotic.

Can You Store Antibiotics In Your Preps?

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“The first rule of antibiotics is try not to use them, and the second rule is try not to use too many of them.” – Paul Marino The ICU Book 2007

Cellulitis

Last week in Soap and Water I posted about the risk, in a collapse situation, of an infection–from minor cuts and scrapes–known as cellulitis. I linked to Dr. Bones Doom and Bloom blog post, Cellulitis: An Epidemic in a Collapse. Here’s another good article by Dr. Bones, A Doctor’s Thoughts on Antibiotics, Expiration Dates, and TEOTWAWKI. For additional perspective about antibiotics before and during a collapse I recommend comments by Dr. ‘Walker’ on TSP forum. Additional, non-prepper/collapse, antibiotic information can be found at eMedicineHealth.com.

I need to state, though I was previously certified and worked as a paramedic for almost ten years, I am currently not a medical professional of any type; thus I am not giving any professional medical advice. All the information in this post is from open internet sources. As Dr. Bones states “. . . [these] are hypothetical strategies for a post-apocalyptic setting. They are not meant to replace standard care and advice when modern medical technology and resources are available.” And always remember, the practice of medicine or dentistry without a license is illegal and punishable by law.

So with all the caveats stated:

Antibiotics refer to a substance that kills, slows or disrupts the growth of:

  • bacterial infections: caused by a pathogenic (a ‘germ’/microorganism that causes disease) bacteria
  • protozoan infections: caused by a parasitic disease, i.e. giardia which occurs through ingestion of infected fecal contaminated water or food

Antibiotics do not fight infections caused by viruses, such as: colds, flu, most coughs, and most sore throats (unless caused by strep).

Much of my information comes from Dr. Bones. I trust his advice. I applaud him; he is a medical doctor who is willing to say what he believes will save lives in a collapse situation. But as he clearly states, “[This] advice is contrary to standard medical practice, and is a strategy that is appropriate only in the event of societal collapse. If there are modern medical resources available to you, seek them out.”

As discussed in Soap and Water, describing a collapse situation, there are several things that will aggravate the chances of getting an infection: 1) We will be doing more ‘dirty’ jobs, 2) We will be doing a lot more manual labor and other activities that can easily lead to cuts and scrapes, and 3) Clean water and basic hygiene will not be as accessible or convenient. So a relatively minor wound that is ignored while you continue working gets more contaminated; then the wound isn’t thoroughly washed out because clean water is saved for drinking. In a short period of time that wound can develop a serious infection.

Dr. Bones states in Fish Antibiotics in a Collapse, “These injuries can begin to show infection, in the form of redness, heat and swelling, within a relatively short time. Treatment of such infections, called “cellulitis”, at an early stage improves the chance that they will heal quickly and completely.  However, many rugged individualists are most likely to “tough it out” until their condition worsens and spreads to their blood.  This causes a condition known as sepsis; fever ensues as well as other problems that could eventually be life-threatening. The availability of antibiotics would allow the possibility of dealing with the issue safely and effectively.”

Having antibiotics available in a collapse situation will be very important, even lifesaving. The question is how can we as preppers obtain a stockpile to be used if other ‘medical resources’ are no longer available?

Dr. Bones continues, “After years of using [antibiotics] on fish, I decided to evaluate these drugs for their potential use in collapse situations. A close inspection of the bottles revealed that the only ingredient was the drug itself, identical to those obtained by prescription at the local pharmacy. If the bottle says FISH-MOX, for example, the sole ingredient is Amoxicillin, which is an antibiotic commonly used in humans.  There are no additional chemicals . . .”

So it seems that fish antibiotics are the same drugs as used in human antibiotics. I believe that adding fish antibiotics to my preps is a sound strategy. They are available, without a prescription, through many fish supply websites. I have purchased, or plan to purchase, the following:

  • Fish-Mox Forte (amoxicillin 500mg): used to treat infections of the ears, nose, throat, urinary tract, skin, pneumonia, and gonorrhea
  • Fish-Flex Forte (cephalexin 500mg): used to treat infections of the bone, ear, skin, urinary tract, and pneumonia; it has very low side effects, (it is typically safe for those with penicillin allergies)
  • Fish-Flox Forte (ciprofloxacin 500mg): used to treat infections of bones and joints, sinuses, skin, urinary tract, gastroenteritis (stomach ‘flu’), typhoid, plague, and anthrax
  • Aqua-Doxy (doxycycline 100mg): used to treat infections of the sinus and respiratory tract, skin (staph), urinary tract, intestines, chlamydia, anthrax, Rickettsia, Lyme disease, plague, and cholera
  • *Fish-Zole (metronidazole (Flagyl) 250mg): as an antiprotozoal, used to treat giardia and dysentery

For any medication you choose to stock (antibiotics or otherwise) print out the entire drug card and keep that information stored with the drug; a good online source of drug information is the U.S. National Library of Medicine. Also it’s always best to store them in the original package and, like food storage, keep in a dry, dark, cool place.

If you choose to add antibiotics to your preps it is your responsibility to be thoroughly educated about their usages, contradictions, doses, and side effects. This is something you can’t just buy and figure you have it if you need it. Obtain additional medical publications such as the Physicians Desk Reference (PDR) or Delmar Nurse’s Drug Handbook*. Antibiotics are drugs, taking an antibiotic is a medical treatment, do not take this lightly. When I was going through my Army medic training one of my instructors said, “Every medicine you put into the body is a toxin, be sure the benefits outweigh the risks.”

(Wednesday: Expired, or Not Expired; That Is The Question)

* There are many other good references available, these are just two examples. There is no reason to buy a current edition; older editions are much cheaper and have essentially all the information a layperson would ever need. 

What I Did This Week To Prep 10/28/11

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Last spring, working on our energy category, I bought a used Generac 5000 generator. My goal is to test it each quarter to ensure it still works properly. I especially wanted to be sure this time of year with the cold winter months approaching. So Ryan, his best friend Chanse, and I got it out. It took us a minute, but once we got the choke properly adjusted it fired up. I need to remember next time that the garage (even with the door open) isn’t the place to test it – it’s loud! Though we haven’t used it other than testing, so far I’ve been pleased with it – but I definitely need more experience using it.

Not long after buying the generator, continuing in the energy category, I bought four slightly used AGM deep cycle batteries and a refurbished Magnum inverter/charger. It took me a while to get all the appropriate knowledge and pieces together. But with the help of a couple TSP forum friends (thanks Dan and Rick), and their electrical/alternative energy knowledge, by early summer I had everything wired together and functional. This past week, after it had quietly sat in the garage for a couple months, I finally did my first test of the system. The test was to see how long our 14 cubic foot deep freezer would run (without opening the freezer) on the batteries. The battery bank, fully charged, started at 12.60 volts. I recorded the time and battery voltage several times a day. It ran for a about 100 hours, until the batteries were at 10.71 volts. A few days after my test I realized that the breaker from the batteries to the inverter had tripped and, after looking at the manual, I determined that the batteries probably should have discharged to 10.50 volts before the inverter tripped off; so add a few more hours to the total. I need to do more testing and develop a better understanding of my backup electric system, but it was a start. Next I’ll do a ‘lights out’ test and see how the battery bank does running some electrical appliances in the house. I also need to use the generator to recharge the discharged battery bank and see how long, and how much gas, that takes.

Ryan & Brynn with our combined order

Lastly, we went to the Mormon Family Home Storage Center (cannery) and canned food to add to our LTS. I previously posted about the Mormon canneries, and included a link to a video of the process, in Long Term Storage (Food Part 2). The staff (Mormon volunteers) were super friendly and helpful. The cannery is scheduled by groups; you can form your own group (Mormon or non-Mormon), or you can be added to a smaller group (we were added to a Mormon group from the Auburn area). A friend had planned to go with me but was unable to go that week, so I offered to do his order as well. Since it was going to be a large order (combined 91 cans) I brought Ryan and Brynn along to help. In addition to us, there were about eight other people in our group. We had each previously submitted our order forms, and all the bulk storage bags we would need had been pulled from the shelves and were ready to go. Start to finish, including orientation and cleanup, took just over two hours. We were assigned a task and, assembly line style, the process started: opening bulk bags, pouring into #10 cans, sealing the metal lid on the can, adding a label, and placing the can in a box for the appropriate order. When all the work was completed, we inventoried and paid for our order. We added 55 #10 cans to our LTS.

What did you do?

(Monday: Antibiotics In Your Preps?)

(10/23/11)

Keeping Wounds Clean With Simple Soap & Water

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Minor cuts and scrapes happen from time to time. Though any open wound is a potential site for infection, we really don’t think much about the small ones other than their initial pain and the inconveniences they cause us as they heal. Most of us live in a world that is relatively safe and even minor wounds don’t happen very often. When they do, the simple steps we take to care for them plus our daily hygiene practices prevent most infections. In rare situations, when the injury becomes infected often the biggest hassle is finding the time to get to the doctor’s office for prescribed antibiotics.

But in a long-term disaster/collapse situation, a minor wound–if neglected–could become deadly. In that scenario, there are several things that will aggravate the chances of getting an infection: 1) We will be doing more ‘dirty’ jobs, i.e. working outside, building fires, handling animals; 2) We will be doing a lot more manual labor, i.e. cutting wood, cooking over a fire, building and repairing, and other activities that can easily lead to cuts and scrapes; and 3) Clean water and basic hygiene will not be as accessible or convenient, i.e. no running water in the house. So a relatively minor wound that is ignored while you continue working gets more contaminated; then the wound isn’t thoroughly washed out because clean water is saved for drinking. In a short period of time that wound can develop a serious infection.

What is the best way to clean and care for a minor wound? Common answers frequently include hydrogen peroxide or alcohol, but not only do both of these harm the healthy tissue they can also delay wound healing. I’ve even heard someone say that ‘alcohol must be the best because it burns the most when you apply it’ – it burns because you are killing the exposed healthy tissue.

The best way to clean a minor wound, and prevent infection, is to remove all debris from the wound with cool, clean running water (this could also be poured or squirted from a container) and a mild soap. Then prior to bandaging it, lightly apply (think chapstick application) petroleum jelly on the wound. This will help the healing process by keeping the wound moist and clean and stop the bandage from sticking. Using antibiotic ointments is unnecessary, they add unneeded cost and may help create more antibiotic resistant bacteria; their main benefit is the same as the petroleum jelly.

Remember there’s a fine line between tough and stupid. The only medical aid available might be from your own group. So plan ahead to minimize injury: wear protective gloves, long pants and long sleeves, and, if appropriate, a helmet and/or goggles. When you do get a minor wound (and you will), make it a priority to clean and dress it as soon as possible. Be sure to know where the nearest first aid kit is kept, have water available for washing, and keep soap in your preps.

Even if you’ve done everything right, there’s a chance infection will occur. The type of infection common in these type wounds is cellulitis. Cellulitis, if not treated by antibiotics, “can cause a life-threatening condition known as sepsis”. This is described by Dr. Bones on his Doom and Bloom blog post, Cellulitis: An Epidemic in a Collapse. I recommend reading it. Next Monday I’ll explain what I’ve learned, and recently done myself, to acquire a stockpile of ‘collapse medicine’ antibiotics.

(Friday: What I Did This Week To Prep)

One Man’s Tool

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…could be another man’s weapon, or different kind of tool.

I was recently reading over a BOB list put together by a co-worker of Sarah’s (it was distributed for September National Preparedness Month). We preppers frequently look at others’ lists and compare them to what we have ourselves. As I read it through, I mentally checked off each item he listed thinking of the equivalent I had in my bag. At the end he mentioned that he keep all his stuff in a pack near his garage door, except his crowbar which he kept under the bed. Crowbar? I don’t have a crowbar. And under the bed? Oh, he’s keeping it there as a weapon…

The crowbar, in it’s current form, has been documented since the 1400s. Also known as a wrecking bar, pry bar, or by the British as a prisebar.

I decided a crowbar would be a good idea. So a trip to the hardware store and $15 later I had a 30 inch iron crowbar for my BOB.

Since we have to be prepared to carry our BOBs, it is helpful if the items we bring along have multiple uses. A crowbar can be used:

  • as a lever to move heavy items
  • to pry things apart
  • to open a damaged car door
  • to open a house door or window
  • to safely break glass
  • as a support anchor
  • as a leg splint
  • as a cane
  • to remove nails
  • as a hammer
  • as a pick axe
  • to break the hasp on a padlock
  • for smashing things

Or as a weapon. I’m not wanting to advocate or predict violence, but desperate times frequently bring out the very best or the very worst in people. I see the crowbar as a defensive weapon, holding it in two hands across your body with the curved portion on top in your dominate hand. It can be used to defend against other blunt weapons, punches, or to create a physical barrier. Offensively, if necessary, holding it the same way and striking with the curved portion using the straight end for a follow-up strike. I would avoid using it like a baseball bat because it’s heavy to swing around, and the momentum could throw you off-balance and out of position. Likely it’s just going to be a psychological weapon. If you’re standing there empty-handed, you look vulnerable; if you’re holding a relatively large crowbar, not so much.

Weight is it’s biggest disadvantage. Five pounds may not seem like much, until you have to carry it in hand for any distance. Strapping it to a pack is an option, but it’s not as accessible. I’d happily deal with the extra weight in an urban setting where I felt defenseless, but in a rural area–especially if I needed to walk for long–I’d likely leave it behind.

The humble crowbar, a tool of many uses – something I hadn’t thought to add to my kit, and now wouldn’t want to do without.

(Wednesday: Soap and Water)

What I Did This Week To Prep 10/21/11

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The north side of the Olympic Peninsula near Sequim (pronounce: skwim) is the area where we hope to find our BOL. We’ve spent considerable time determining what we wanted in a BOL community before deciding on Sequim. Our goal was to find something in a rural area near a small town, with a temperate climate, that was less than three hours from our current home; a location that didn’t require us to drive through the mountains, a major metropolis, or cross a bridge to get there. We really like the resources and feeling of Sequim; now we just need to find that right piece of property.

That part is much easier said than done. We’ve been tracking available properties online for several months. We had even gone to look at a few, but hadn’t found anything that interested us. Recently I’ve been watching one online that looked promising. We researched it further and agreed it’d be worth looking at. Since Sarah had an extra couple days off we decided to head out to Sequim and look at BOL property. We spent time looking at it and walking around the acreage, and we both really liked it. The property itself is great; the structures will need some work – but it had location, location, location. I’ll keep you posted if anything comes of it.

On the way back from Sequim we stopped in Vashon Island to pick up the newest addition to our family: a seven week old female Border Collie, named Kate. We had been in contact with the breeder for several weeks and were just waiting for her to get old enough so that we could go get her and bring her home. She is a cute little thing; as Emily says, she’s “freaking adorable.” Is a dog a prepper topic? Of course it is! Not only does a dog add to the home security with it’s heightened senses and awareness, it also adds comfort and a sense of normalcy in a stressful situation. Remember, you dog needs to be included in planning your preps: storing extra dog food, and including it in your evacuation plan.

Since we needed dog food for Kate, we made our monthly trip to Costco early. (Early in the sense that their monthly coupons weren’t available for another week.) They had a good price on Duracell Daylite LED D cell flashlights, so we picked up a couple of those. We have several flashlights, but they are already distributed throughout the house; we wanted to get a couple of quality ones to put in a central location. We bough puppy food (including plenty of extra), the Kirkland brand has good ingredients at a good price. We got some extra peanut butter and plan to get more before peanut butter prices go up soon – ounce for ounce peanut butter is one of the cheapest sources of protein available. Also wool socks were on sale so we got a few extra to add to our BOBs.

What did you do?

(Monday: One Man’s Tool)

(10/16/11)

A List

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The room goes dark and quiet. Power outage. Why really doesn’t matter right now; right now you’re sitting in a dark house. Time to start putting some of your preps to use. Duration of the blackout and appropriate level of concern, will be determined as things progress. But for now, you feel good about your families’ situation; your five basic needs are met pretty well.

But what about your daily wants and activities? We are creatures of habit; our routines give us comfort. To establish some type of normalcy will be important. Once we are warm, fed, and safe; the next complaint will be lack of everyday activity and boredom.

So what now? It’s hard to address these issues if you haven’t thought about them before. So as a family we tried to brainstorm all the things we do–at the house–on a regular basis. (No particular order, we just went around the group and each of us named something until we couldn’t think of anything else.) We didn’t try to solve any problems, or develop any ideas. I just wanted a list of things we regularly do, and to create an awareness of our normal activities.

Eventually, I want to look at each item on the list and determine it’s relative importance in an emergency situation. Do we need a back-up, a substitute, or possibly an alternate way of achieving the same end?

But for now, it’s just a list:

  1. Going to the bathroom
  2. Internet
  3. Cooking
  4. Drinking water
  5. Brushing teeth
  6. Reading
  7. Watching TV shows
  8. Putting on make up
  9. Sleeping
  10. Studying and learning
  11. Laundry
  12. Shaving
  13. Music
  14. Hanging with friends
  15. Washing hair
  16. Dishes
  17. Getting dressed
  18. Drawing
  19. Keeping food cold
  20. Wake up with alarm
  21. Crafts
  22. Drinking alcohol
  23. Using computers (non Internet)
  24. Taking medicine
  25. Texting
  26. Games
  27. Playing with and caring for pets
  28. Staying warm
  29. Watching movies
  30. Taking out trash
  31. Vacuuming
  32. Taking pictures
  33. Using microwave
  34. Dealing with menstrual cycles
  35. Sweeping
  36. Fixing stuff
  37. Video games
  38. Preparing food
  39. Changing batteries
  40. Telling time
  41. Washing hands and face
  42. Opening doors
  43. Showering
  44. Talking
  45. Building things
  46. Drinking coffee
  47. Relaxing
  48. Baking
  49. Cleaning
  50. Putting on lotion
  51. Locking doors
(Friday: What I Did This Week To Prep)