Preparedness Notes for Sunday — February 23, 2020

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Today is the anniversary of the beginning of the Battle of the Alamo (February 23 – March 6, 1836).

February 23rd is also the birthday of Captain Isaac Davis (February 23, 1745 – April 19, 1775), a militia officer and gunsmith who commanded a Minute Company in Acton, Massachusetts during the Battle of Concord.

—

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 87 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The more than $10,000 worth of prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. A gift certificate from Quantum Harvest LLC (up to a $2,200 value) good for 12% off the purchase of any of their sun-tracking models, and 10% off the purchase price of any of their other models.
  2. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any one, two, or three day course (a $1,095 value),
  3. A course certificate from onPoint Tactical for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses, excluding those restricted for military or government teams. Three day onPoint courses normally cost $795,
  4. DRD Tactical is providing a 5.56 NATO QD Billet upper. These have hammer forged, chrome-lined barrels and a hard case, to go with your own AR lower. It will allow any standard AR-type rifle to have a quick change barrel. This can be assembled in less than one minute without the use of any tools. It also provides a compact carry capability in a hard case or in 3-day pack (an $1,100 value),
  5. Two cases of Mountain House freeze-dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  6. A $250 gift certificate good for any product from Sunflower Ammo,
  7. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses.

Second Prize:

  1. A Front Sight Lifetime Diamond Membership, providing lifetime free training at any Front Sight Nevada course, with no limit on repeating classes. This prize is courtesy of a SurvivalBlog reader who prefers to be anonymous.
  2. A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training, which have a combined retail value of $589,
  3. A $300 purchase credit for any of the products from EMPShield.com
  4. A Three-Day Deluxe Emergency Kit from Emergency Essentials (a $190 value),
  5. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from www.TOUGHGRID.com (a $240 value).
  6. An assortment of products along with a one hour consultation on health and wellness from Pruitt’s Tree Resin (a $265 value).

Third Prize:

  1. Good2GoCo.com is providing a $400 purchase credit at regular prices for the prize winner’s choice of either Wise Foods or Augason long term storage foods, in stackable buckets.
  2. Three sets each of made-in-USA regular and wide-mouth reusable canning lids. (This is a total of 300 lids and 600 gaskets.) This prize is courtesy of Harvest Guard (a $270 value)
  3. A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21 (a $275 value),
  4. Naturally Cozy is donating a “Prepper Pack” Menstrual Kit.  This kit contains 18 pads and it comes vacuum sealed for long term storage or slips easily into a bugout bag.  The value of this kit is $220.
  5. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  6. A transferable $100 purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun. There is no paperwork required for delivery of pre-1899 guns into most states, making them the last bastion of firearms purchasing privacy!

Round 87 ends on March 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

The GSM and the NWO, by H.M.

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Editor’s Introductory Note:  At SurvivalBlog we do our best to present a variety of opinions. The following  article is highly opinionated. Some might say that it borders on a “rant.” If that bothers you, then simply skip reading it. Please keep your comments civil.

—

I have been a prepper for more than thirty years, without really knowing why. I knew that something was coming and have since then come to the realization that a group of very powerful people want to end life as we’ve known it and return the world to the feudal system of the Middle Ages. To do this, the world population must be reduced to a level that can be controlled. Don’t believe me? Look up the Georgia Guide Stones, where the first goal of the New World Order (NWO) is to reduce world population to 500 million people, a level they can more easily control. As many of you know, this is being undertaken with the help of Big Pharma, our conventional medical system, and the poisoning of our food, water, and the very air that we breath. They pushed the Global Warming scam as far as it could go. We did have a warming cycle but that ended in 2008, so the Climate Change narrative was invented.

I recently heard an interview of David DuByne, author of the book “The Coming Grand Solar Minimum”. He looked back at the weather over the past thousand years and applied the dates of solar activity to significant events in history. What he found was that many of the wars, famines, social upheaval, and revolutions corresponded exactly to periods of reduced solar activity, which is indicated by the occurrence of sunspots. He also determined that the most significant solar minimums occurred about every 400 years, with the last one taking place in the 1600s-1700s. There have been 27 Grand Solar Minimums (GSMs) in the past 11,000 years, with 407 years average time between each of them. The effects on crops, due to less intense solar rays, have caused famines bad enough to be a major factor in the French Revolution. The Year Without A Summer in 1816, was caused by volcanic dust from the Mount Tambora eruption in April 1815, blocking the already reduced sunlight reaching the earth.

As I’m writing this, more than 50,000 armed patriots peacefully are gathering in Richmond, Virginia to protest the efforts by the Virginia Governor and Legislature to subvert the 2nd Amendment. I believe that former President Barak Obama is calling the shots for this scam from his residence in Washington D.C. The NWO cannot take down America as planned if its citizens are able to resist. The 2nd Amendment is not about hunting, it was given to us by the Founding Fathers to be able to withstand the efforts of a tyrannical government, which history has shown will always turn on its people. During this same week, part of the NWO true agenda has been revealed by a Project Veritas video of a Bernie Sanders campaign manager who brags that they will incite violence this year in order to start a civil war and prevent President Trump’s reelection. He also said that if Sanders is elected President, patriots like us will be herded into “reeducation camps” to be brainwashed or killed, something Hillary Clinton called “fun camps” a few years ago.

After extensive research, I have come to the opinion that the New World Order has known about an imminent Grand Solar Minimum for decades, and have been making plans for their survival and control of the aftermath, while at the same time implementing policies and agendas that will ensure our demise. They have called their program Agenda 21 and have quietly imposed its draconian measures through the United Nations. The U.S. Federal Government has done so through its alphabet agencies, and through state and local governments. The Agenda 21 draft came out of the 1992 Earth Summit held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. “21” is supposed to refer to the 21st Century, and its goals were covered under the phrase “Sustainable Development”. The document was 350 pages, broken down into four sections, and 40 chapters, and was adopted by 178 government representatives at the conference.Continue reading“The GSM and the NWO, by H.M.”

The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods

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SurvivalBlog presents another edition of The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods— a collection of news bits and pieces that are relevant to the modern survivalist and prepper from “JWR”. Our goal is to educate our readers, to help them to recognize emerging threats and to be better prepared for both disasters and negative societal trends. You can’t mitigate a risk if you haven’t first identified a risk. Today, we look at a new test for poisonous mushrooms.

New Test for Poisonous Mushrooms and False Morels

Reader C.B. sent this: New test identifies poisonous mushrooms. Here is how the article leads off:

“A simple, portable test that can detect the deadliest of the mushroom poisons in minutes has been developed by Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists and their colleagues.

Eating toxic mushrooms causes more than 100 deaths a year, globally, and leaves thousands of people in need of urgent medical assistance. Amanitin is the class of mushroom toxins that cause the most serious issues.

The new test can identify the presence of as little as 10 parts per billion (equivalent to 10 cents out of $10 million) of amanitin in about 10 minutes from a rice grain size sample of a mushroom or in the urine of someone who has eaten a poisonous amanitin-containing mushroom. The test also works with dog urine, as dogs are known to indiscriminately eat mushrooms.”

Mac Software Threats Increasing

Also from C.B.: Mac software threats climbed 400% in 2019, more than Microsoft Windows, report says

Archery Hunter Kills 700 Pound Black Bear in New Jersey

Reader DSV sent us this: 700-pound black bear shot in New Jersey sets world record. Here is a snippet:

“A bowhunting organization says a 700-pound bear shot in New Jersey last fall has set a world record as the largest black bear killed with a bow and arrow in North America.

The Pope and Young Club, a bowhunting and conservation organization, said the bear killed Oct. 14 in Morris County toppled a record set in 1993 by a hunter in California. The new record was announced after a special panel of judges was assembled Feb. 8 in Harrisburg during the Great American Outdoors Show, the group said.”Continue reading“The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

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“Now of the things which we have spoken this is the sum: We have such an high priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens;

A minister of the sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man.

For every high priest is ordained to offer gifts and sacrifices: wherefore it is of necessity that this man have somewhat also to offer.

For if he were on earth, he should not be a priest, seeing that there are priests that offer gifts according to the law:

Who serve unto the example and shadow of heavenly things, as Moses was admonished of God when he was about to make the tabernacle: for, See, saith he, that thou make all things according to the pattern shewed to thee in the mount.

But now hath he obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also he is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises.

For if that first covenant had been faultless, then should no place have been sought for the second.

For finding fault with them, he saith, Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah:

Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, saith the Lord.

For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people:

And they shall not teach every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest.

For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more.

In that he saith, A new covenant, he hath made the first old. Now that which decayeth and waxeth old is ready to vanish away.” – Hebrews 8 (KJV)

Preparedness Notes for Saturday — February 22, 2020

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On this day in 1943, Sophie Scholl was executed by beheading for organizing the White Rose group–a student resistance to the Hitler regime.  She had been convicted of high treason, after having been found distributing anti-war leaflets at the University of Munich (LMU) with her brother, Hans. She was 21 years old. (Pictured: White Rose group leaders: Hans Scholl, Sophie Scholl, and Christoph Probst.)

Also on this day in 1732, George Washington was born in Westmoreland County, Virginia, the second son from the second marriage of a colonial plantation owner. An initially loyal British subject, Washington eventually led the Continental Army in the American Revolution and became known as the father of the United States.

—

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 87 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The more than $10,000 worth of prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. A gift certificate from Quantum Harvest LLC (up to a $2,200 value) good for 12% off the purchase of any of their sun-tracking models, and 10% off the purchase price of any of their other models.
  2. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any one, two, or three day course (a $1,095 value),
  3. A course certificate from onPoint Tactical for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses, excluding those restricted for military or government teams. Three day onPoint courses normally cost $795,
  4. DRD Tactical is providing a 5.56 NATO QD Billet upper. These have hammer forged, chrome-lined barrels and a hard case, to go with your own AR lower. It will allow any standard AR-type rifle to have a quick change barrel. This can be assembled in less than one minute without the use of any tools. It also provides a compact carry capability in a hard case or in 3-day pack (an $1,100 value),
  5. Two cases of Mountain House freeze-dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  6. A $250 gift certificate good for any product from Sunflower Ammo,
  7. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses.

Second Prize:

  1. A Front Sight Lifetime Diamond Membership, providing lifetime free training at any Front Sight Nevada course, with no limit on repeating classes. This prize is courtesy of a SurvivalBlog reader who prefers to be anonymous.
  2. A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training, which have a combined retail value of $589,
  3. A $300 purchase credit for any of the products from EMPShield.com
  4. A Three-Day Deluxe Emergency Kit from Emergency Essentials (a $190 value),
  5. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from www.TOUGHGRID.com (a $240 value).
  6. An assortment of products along with a one hour consultation on health and wellness from Pruitt’s Tree Resin (a $265 value).

Third Prize:

  1. Good2GoCo.com is providing a $400 purchase credit at regular prices for the prize winner’s choice of either Wise Foods or Augason long term storage foods, in stackable buckets.
  2. Three sets each of made-in-USA regular and wide-mouth reusable canning lids. (This is a total of 300 lids and 600 gaskets.) This prize is courtesy of Harvest Guard (a $270 value)
  3. A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21 (a $275 value),
  4. Naturally Cozy is donating a “Prepper Pack” Menstrual Kit.  This kit contains 18 pads and it comes vacuum sealed for long term storage or slips easily into a bugout bag.  The value of this kit is $220.
  5. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  6. A transferable $100 purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun. There is no paperwork required for delivery of pre-1899 guns into most states, making them the last bastion of firearms purchasing privacy!

Round 87 ends on March 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

Rule 1 for Survival: Fitness – Part 2, by John H.

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(Continued from Part 1. This concludes the article.)

You are the expert on your body, and it is within your ability to train it effectively.

Just like with anything, there are a million exercises you can do. Don’t worry! Here are some simple tips that will be helpful.

  1. Strength train 2 – 3 times per week. I like to include strength training on my cardio days, but with a break in-between.
  2. Mix it up. You can do back exercises on Day 1, shoulder and arm exercises on Day 2, and a combination on Day 3. Also, you can and should vary the exercises themselves. Again, go to YouTube and find ones that work for your specific fitness goals.
  3. On a weekly or bi-weekly basis, increase the difficulty of your training. You can either increase the repetitions (reps) or weight of your exercise. However, don’t let an exercise get too easy. Always push yourself just a little bit.
  4. If you do Yoga, exercising your core comes naturally. However, it is always important to include core exercises as they are the most underrated and missed. Especially if you are older, having a strong core will help prevent many injuries.
  1. Cardio

There is no survival without cardio, and a big aspect of this is weight. There is no way around it. There is a direct correlation between losing weight and running faster.

It makes perfect sense. If you are carrying less weight, your heart does less work because your blood circulates more quickly and efficiently.

The good thing is, even moderate cardio training can have large effects on your weight and overall fitness. There is so much variability here, don’t be discouraged by having to run X amount of miles in a month or whatever.

Every form of cardio training is helpful, and here are some specifics.

  1. You have two different types of muscle fiber: short and fast twitch.

Your fast twitch fibers provide sudden bursts of energy, while your short twitch fibers provide steady endurance. This points to a key factor in all exercise: You have to mix it up and do different forms of cardio.

Doing a long distance, low-intensity run on one day and then hill-runs or sprints the next day is a perfect example.

  1. You have different measurements of cardio ability. For example, your v02 max measures the amount of oxygen your blood can hold. The higher it is, the more endurance and strength you will have. Your resting heart rate measures how strong your heart is, and by extension, how efficiently it pumps blood to the rest of your body.

In order to maximize these elements of cardio health, again, you have to mix it up and do different kinds of cardio training. Your v02 max will plateau pretty quickly if you only do long, slow runs. You have to do sprints, hill runs, and long,slow runs to help your body move efficiently.

  1. Pick the cardio form that is right for you. I like running, especially because it is fun for me after years of healing. Of course, running is also difficult on your joints. My personal opinion is that the best cardio plan includes each of the trifecta (running, biking, swimming) but you can choose which works best for you.
My Training Plan:
  1. Yoga every morning, either a thirty minute session in a beginner’s course or a shorter version that focuses on my back. I still have hip problems from my injury.
  2. I will eventually include biking and swimming, probably on my “rest days”.
  3. The longer I can make those hikes, the better. As long as I am not running, there is no significant wear on my joints or muscles, so walk as far as you want on those “rest days!”

Day 1:

  • Couch to 10K Run
  • Post-run Stretching
  • Weights and Compound Exercises – Chest and Arms

Day 2 (Rest day)

  • Hike and hill runs
  • Eventually, I will replace one day of hill runs with 1500 meter sprints.

Day 3:

  • Couch to 10K Run
  • Post-run Stretching
  • Weights and Compound Exercises – Back and Core

Day 4 (Rest day)

  • Hike and hill runs
  • Eventually, I will replace one day of hill runs with 1500 meter sprints.

Day 5:

  • Couch to 10K Run
  • Post-run Stretching
  • Weights and Compound Exercises – Combination

Day 6: (Rest Day)

  • A hike. walking my dog

Day 7: (Rest Day)

  • A hike. walking my dog
Key Elements of Diet:

You cannot address fitness without diet, and just like fitness, everybody has an opinion, and there are a million different websites and books selling their own plans.

I would suggest that diet, except for those of you suffering from very legitimate health problems, is a great deal more simple than it seems.

It is also very important to address diet because we are what we eat, and it is impossible to fuel our bodies without the proper nutrients.

Here are a few things to remember:

  1. Eat less red meat. There is no doubt, especially for those of us with cholesterol or blood pressure problems, that adding in more poultry and fish, along with cutting the amount of steak we eat, is helpful. All you have to do is look at the literature surrounding the Mediterranean Diet or the lifespans of the Japanese to realize that the type of protein we eat is very important.
  2. Eat less junk food, or maybe none at all. It is easy to turn the package over and check to see if the chips have added sugar, how much fat is in the cookies, or how many artificial colors are in the candy. Anything that is processed, refined, or in a bag, should be limited.
  3. Cut out soda and instead go for unsweetened sparkling waters. I promise you, it’s likely the carbonation you are missing, not as much the sugar.
  4. Eat lots of whole-grains, vegetables and fruit, as well as brown vs. white rice. Don’t cut out animal protein entirely, but also see how beans, legumes, and other plant products can contribute to your overall diet.

Here are some personal opinions, which I’m happy to have people disagree with! Again, everyone is different and should find what works for them.

First, Don’t go for a fad diet. Keto is a fad diet, just like thousands of others. Read about it, and you will realize it may help you lose weight, but then will cripple you as you become more active. Unless you have a specific dietary or medical need – which certainly exist – moderation and balance are key.

Second, I do not believe in six small meals a day. My opinion is that eating this way trains your body to snack. Snacks are one of the more insidious weight gain devils because they are available whenever you want them. Your brain just has to tell you, “I’m hungry!” even if your body does not need food.

I personally believe that as you become more healthy, it will be easier to stick to three balanced meals per day. You should be able to eat a good meal and not have to snack. Of course, in a survival situation, you should be focused on energy, not weight loss or maintenance. This mode of thinking goes out the window in TEOTWAWKI.

For example, I am currently on a 1,500 calorie diet plus exercise to lose weight. Thinking about the content of each meal and realizing you have to make those 500 calories last for the next five hours is a powerful learning tool and motivator.

Key Elements of Mindfulness and/or Self Control:

Finally, it is important to address the issues of your mind and your heart. Separate from religion and spirituality, it is possible to take responsibility for your actions throughout the day by recognizing what your body is feeling and intentionally changing your behaviors.

Here are a few examples.

When it comes to food, we have been programmed to eat whenever we feel hungry. This leads to snacking, often on high and empty calorie food. If your body is hungry, let’s say when you wake up in the morning, it is perfectly acceptable to make it wait.

If you wake up at 6:00, try just drinking some water and coffee until 8:00 or 9:00. Likewise, if you still feel hungry after eating a dinner that you know has enough calories, let the chemicals that are firing subside before you decide if you need more food.

This is an issue of self control and resilience. In a survival situation, we will have to do more while eating less food. It is a good idea to have your mind and body trained for the eventuality.

Mindfulness can also help us in our physical training.

Fear, whether it be of pain, failure, or something else, can often get in the way of physical activity. The key is to recognize when that fear arises, consciously trace the cause of that fear, and then consciously choose to do something about it.

The less our responses are reactionary and rather trained, the more control we have over our body and mind.

Conclusion

I hope this post has been helpful. There is so much information out there about exercise and nutrition. If you want to go more in-depth, of course you should! I just hope I was able to show you that getting your body back in shape is entirely in your control.

Editors’ Prepping Progress

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To be prepared for a crisis, every Prepper must establish goals and make long-term and short-term plans. In this column, the SurvivalBlog editors review their week’s prep activities and planned prep activities for the coming week. These range from healthcare and gear purchases to gardening, ranch improvements, bug out bag fine-tuning, and food storage. This is something akin to our Retreat Owner Profiles, but written incrementally and in detail, throughout the year. Note that as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. We always welcome you to share your own successes and wisdom in the Comments. Let’s keep busy and be ready!

Jim Reports:

We still have patchy snow, here at the Rawles Ranch. We are coming into what I call the late winter “Bev Doolittle Season.” (See the illustration, above.)  With this much snow still on the ground, it is an awkward time for hauling manure. A sled loaded with 200 pounds of cow manure works great when dragged by hand on the snowy patches, but it is truly “a drag” when pulling it across the bare patches. And yet it is still too early in the year to use a wheelbarrow or an ATV.  Parenthetically, I suppose we should finally train one of our saddle horses for pulling.

I have some travel planned in March, to meet family obligations. But I’m confident that when I return in early April, I’ll be able to get back into the woods to cut firewood. And I’m sure that Lily will have a list of things for me to catch up on.

Things have been going well with my new venture, Elk Creek Company. I’ve found it vary gratifying to be back in the antique gun business. It warms my heart to drop off a nice long box at the post office, knowing that it is going to someone with no government paperwork.  Pre-1899 antique cartridge guns truly are the last bastion of anonymous firearms ownership. (BTW, I have a feeling that many states will soon attempt to restrict 80%-complete receivers. I recommend that you hedge your bets, folks: Buy a few pre-1899 guns that shoot commonly available factory ammunition.)

A special word of thanks for the folks who placed orders during the short term sale that I recently ran, to raise cash for a replacement laptop computer, for Lily. Muchas gracias!

As usual, Lily has a lot to report, so I’ll turn this over to her…

Avalanche Lily Reports:

Dear Readers,

Weather-wise after an unexpected six inch snowfall early in the week, we had a beautifully sunny week in which to accomplish much stuff.

In the greenhouse, I took all of my stacked seedling trays and put in the one inch and four inch pots in preparation to receive soil.  Later in the week, I filled 16 trays with soil, in preparation for seed planting next month.  I still have about another thirty or so trays of pots to fill with soil during this coming week.

I made guacamole with the latest batch of ripened avocados, froze them in ice cube trays, and put the avocado cubes into the plastic bags with the other Guac cubes.  I bought yet another dozen avos, and am waiting for these to ripen–these also to freeze.  If you haven’t figured it out, yet, as you can see, I love avocado and want to have it for as long as we can when these crops become scarce in the future.

I spent a lot of time this week learning about a method of procuring another source of protein for our family, gathering the equipment and tools needed, learning how to use them and fix them, watching videos and studying the law.  But for OPSEC reasons at this time I am unable to tell you about it.  I’m sorry.  But later, I will be able to let you know.

We had family friends visit on Friday, so spent much time cleaning and cooking food.  We had a lovely time together with lots of good food, fun fellowship and conversation.  Spending time with good friends is like the Balm of Gilead to our souls.

May you all have a very blessed and safe week.

– Avalanche Lily, Rawles

o o o

As always, please share your own successes and hard-earned wisdom in the Comments.

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

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“Better is a dry morsel, and quietness therewith, than an house full of sacrifices with strife.

A wise servant shall have rule over a son that causeth shame, and shall have part of the inheritance among the brethren.

The fining pot is for silver, and the furnace for gold: but the Lord trieth the hearts.

A wicked doer giveth heed to false lips; and a liar giveth ear to a naughty tongue.

Whoso mocketh the poor reproacheth his Maker: and he that is glad at calamities shall not be unpunished.

Children’s children are the crown of old men; and the glory of children are their fathers.

Excellent speech becometh not a fool: much less do lying lips a prince.

A gift is as a precious stone in the eyes of him that hath it: whithersoever it turneth, it prospereth.

He that covereth a transgression seeketh love; but he that repeateth a matter separateth very friends.

A reproof entereth more into a wise man than an hundred stripes into a fool.

An evil man seeketh only rebellion: therefore a cruel messenger shall be sent against him.

Let a bear robbed of her whelps meet a man, rather than a fool in his folly.

Whoso rewardeth evil for good, evil shall not depart from his house.

The beginning of strife is as when one letteth out water: therefore leave off contention, before it be meddled with.

He that justifieth the wicked, and he that condemneth the just, even they both are abomination to the Lord.

Wherefore is there a price in the hand of a fool to get wisdom, seeing he hath no heart to it?

A friend loveth at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.

A man void of understanding striketh hands, and becometh surety in the presence of his friend.

He loveth transgression that loveth strife: and he that exalteth his gate seeketh destruction.

He that hath a froward heart findeth no good: and he that hath a perverse tongue falleth into mischief.

He that begetteth a fool doeth it to his sorrow: and the father of a fool hath no joy.

A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones.

A wicked man taketh a gift out of the bosom to pervert the ways of judgment.

Wisdom is before him that hath understanding; but the eyes of a fool are in the ends of the earth.

A foolish son is a grief to his father, and bitterness to her that bare him.

Also to punish the just is not good, nor to strike princes for equity.

He that hath knowledge spareth his words: and a man of understanding is of an excellent spirit.

Even a fool, when he holdeth his peace, is counted wise: and he that shutteth his lips is esteemed a man of understanding.” – Proverbs 17 (KJV)

Preparedness Notes for Friday — February 21, 2020

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February 21st is the birthday of Group Captain Douglas Bader (born 1910, died 5 September 1982). He was a Royal Air Force (RAF) fighter ace during the Second World War. He lost his legs in a pre-war flying accident, but that didn’t stop him from re-entering the RAF when war broke out. He was credited with 20 aerial victories, four shared victories, six probables, one shared probable, and 11 enemy aircraft damaged. Bader was eventually shot down and became a POW in Germany. Since the Luftwaffe ran its own POW camps, he became a celebrity with his captors. The Germans would lock up his hollow metal prosthetic legs each night to prevent him from escaping. Bader’s autobiography Reach for the Sky is a must for those studying aviation in World War II.

—

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 87 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The more than $10,000 worth of prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. A gift certificate from Quantum Harvest LLC (up to a $2,200 value) good for 12% off the purchase of any of their sun-tracking models, and 10% off the purchase price of any of their other models.
  2. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any one, two, or three day course (a $1,095 value),
  3. A course certificate from onPoint Tactical for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses, excluding those restricted for military or government teams. Three day onPoint courses normally cost $795,
  4. DRD Tactical is providing a 5.56 NATO QD Billet upper. These have hammer forged, chrome-lined barrels and a hard case, to go with your own AR lower. It will allow any standard AR-type rifle to have a quick change barrel. This can be assembled in less than one minute without the use of any tools. It also provides a compact carry capability in a hard case or in 3-day pack (an $1,100 value),
  5. Two cases of Mountain House freeze-dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  6. A $250 gift certificate good for any product from Sunflower Ammo,
  7. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses.

Second Prize:

  1. A Front Sight Lifetime Diamond Membership, providing lifetime free training at any Front Sight Nevada course, with no limit on repeating classes. This prize is courtesy of a SurvivalBlog reader who prefers to be anonymous.
  2. A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training, which have a combined retail value of $589,
  3. A $300 purchase credit for any of the products from EMPShield.com
  4. A Three-Day Deluxe Emergency Kit from Emergency Essentials (a $190 value),
  5. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from www.TOUGHGRID.com (a $240 value).
  6. An assortment of products along with a one hour consultation on health and wellness from Pruitt’s Tree Resin (a $265 value).

Third Prize:

  1. Good2GoCo.com is providing a $400 purchase credit at regular prices for the prize winner’s choice of either Wise Foods or Augason long term storage foods, in stackable buckets.
  2. Three sets each of made-in-USA regular and wide-mouth reusable canning lids. (This is a total of 300 lids and 600 gaskets.) This prize is courtesy of Harvest Guard (a $270 value)
  3. A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21 (a $275 value),
  4. Naturally Cozy is donating a “Prepper Pack” Menstrual Kit.  This kit contains 18 pads and it comes vacuum sealed for long term storage or slips easily into a bugout bag.  The value of this kit is $220.
  5. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  6. A transferable $100 purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun. There is no paperwork required for delivery of pre-1899 guns into most states, making them the last bastion of firearms purchasing privacy!

Round 87 ends on March 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

Rule 1 for Survival: Fitness – Part 1, by John H.

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Introduction

Rule #1 rule of any survival situation is physical fitness. True fitness provides you the ability to respond to any situation without failing.

Based on our age, health situation, and more, physical fitness is different for each of us.

It is not a win-lose situation. You do not have to choose between being either an extreme athlete or a couch potato. Everybody’s journey is different.

However, the most important thing is that you always continue to work towards your goal, one step at a time.

Any improvement is worth it.

A Bit About Me

In this post, we will be exploring some basic advice and tips on how to get and stay physically fit. First off though, here is a little about me.

When I was 18, I broke my femur in half while snowboarding. It took three years and two surgeries to get through the chronic pain to a place of full healing.

During that time, I became interested in running and threw myself into cardio (running, biking, swimming) and weight training. It also helped that I had gained thirty pounds in college!

I am not an expert, but at my peak, I did get down to 15% body fat and clocked a 25:30 5 kilometer (“5K”) run. I did a great deal of research and really dedicated myself to being physically fit.

Now, after four years of professional life, I am nowhere near that shape, but I have begun again to dedicate myself to becoming physically fit. I will be running another 5K race in April.

There is so much advice out there, much of it contradictory or dedicated to people who are far more intense about their bodies than you or I need to be. This post is just some simple, friendly tips on how those normal people among us can reach a point of physical ability where we feel comfortable about acting in a survival situation.

Key Elements of Fitness:

Before I address the three elements of fitness as I see them, let’s just say a few things out front.

  • Anything you do is better than nothing. Do not believe you have to attain an ideal weight or body type in order to become more healthy.
  • Each personal fitness journey is different. There is no mold that fits you. Do what is right for your body.
  • All exercise should build incrementally. Never feel forced to attain everything all at once. Set a reasonable goal a few months in the future, say running a race, and work towards it.
  • Exercise does not need to be planned. You don’t have to hit the gym or put on your running shoes. It can be as simple as, “every time I get to the office, I am going to use the stairs.”
  • A “rest day” does not mean a no exercise day. In order to become truly fit, you have to think about incorporating fitness wherever you go and any time of day. Going to the gym three times a week and then vegging in front of the television on your off days will do nothing. Instead, a “rest day” means you dial back your physical activity so your body can heal. Perhaps you do a less high-impact form of cardio. Maybe you swim instead of running, but you never spend an entire day not moving.

Continue reading“Rule 1 for Survival: Fitness – Part 1, by John H.”

Economics & Investing For Preppers

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Here are the latest news items and commentary on current economics news, market trends, stocks, investing opportunities, and the precious metals markets. We also cover hedges, derivatives, and obscura. Most of these items are from the “tangibles heavy” contrarian perspective of SurvivalBlog’s Founder and Senior Editor, JWR. Today, we look at the recent Rock Island gun auction. (See the Tangibles Investing section.)

Precious Metals:

Gold, silver prices see safe-haven demand on global economic worries.

o  o  o

Gold nears 7-year peak on virus economic impact; palladium hits record. A little snippet:

“Elsewhere, palladium scaled a record high of $2,841.54 an ounce and was last up 5.2% at $2,771.77.”

o  o  o

Why silver prices may climb to their highest yearly average since 2014

Economy & Finance:

At Zero Hedge: The Global Supply & Demand Shock Of The Coronavirus. (Thanks to H.L. for the link.)

o  o  o

CNBC: There’s now a record number of 401(k) and IRA millionaires, according to Fidelity

o  o  o

Something over at Wolf Street to file under “I told you so…”:  Coronavirus Slams Airbnb, Airlines, Hotels, Casinos, San Francisco, Other Hot Spots

o  o  o

Dominos Are Falling – China Shutdown To Crush India’s Already-Crumbling Economy

Continue reading“Economics & Investing For Preppers”

Preparedness Notes for Thursday — February 20, 2020

0

This is the birthday of novelist and screenwriter Richard Matheson (1926–2013). He wrote many sci-fi television scripts. His novella I Am Legend later was adapted into three different movies over the course of five decades, and his story Bid Time Return became the charming movie Somewhere In Time.

—

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 87 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The more than $10,000 worth of prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. A gift certificate from Quantum Harvest LLC (up to a $2,200 value) good for 12% off the purchase of any of their sun-tracking models, and 10% off the purchase price of any of their other models.
  2. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any one, two, or three day course (a $1,095 value),
  3. A course certificate from onPoint Tactical for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses, excluding those restricted for military or government teams. Three day onPoint courses normally cost $795,
  4. DRD Tactical is providing a 5.56 NATO QD Billet upper. These have hammer forged, chrome-lined barrels and a hard case, to go with your own AR lower. It will allow any standard AR-type rifle to have a quick change barrel. This can be assembled in less than one minute without the use of any tools. It also provides a compact carry capability in a hard case or in 3-day pack (an $1,100 value),
  5. Two cases of Mountain House freeze-dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  6. A $250 gift certificate good for any product from Sunflower Ammo,
  7. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses.

Second Prize:

  1. A Front Sight Lifetime Diamond Membership, providing lifetime free training at any Front Sight Nevada course, with no limit on repeating classes. This prize is courtesy of a SurvivalBlog reader who prefers to be anonymous.
  2. A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training, which have a combined retail value of $589,
  3. A $300 purchase credit for any of the products from EMPShield.com
  4. A Three-Day Deluxe Emergency Kit from Emergency Essentials (a $190 value),
  5. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from www.TOUGHGRID.com (a $240 value).
  6. An assortment of products along with a one hour consultation on health and wellness from Pruitt’s Tree Resin (a $265 value).

Third Prize:

  1. Good2GoCo.com is providing a $400 purchase credit at regular prices for the prize winner’s choice of either Wise Foods or Augason long term storage foods, in stackable buckets.
  2. Three sets each of made-in-USA regular and wide-mouth reusable canning lids. (This is a total of 300 lids and 600 gaskets.) This prize is courtesy of Harvest Guard (a $270 value)
  3. A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21 (a $275 value),
  4. Naturally Cozy is donating a “Prepper Pack” Menstrual Kit.  This kit contains 18 pads and it comes vacuum sealed for long term storage or slips easily into a bugout bag.  The value of this kit is $220.
  5. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  6. A transferable $100 purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun. There is no paperwork required for delivery of pre-1899 guns into most states, making them the last bastion of firearms purchasing privacy!

Round 87 ends on March 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

Prepping at the Dollar Store, by Ani

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Editor’s Note: Coincidentally, I received two very similar articles from readers in two states, in the same month. But because they have different perspectives, I’ve decided to post both of them. (The other one was posted yesterday.)

—

With a lot of attention being paid in the past few weeks to the spread of the novel coronavirus in China and the potential but still unknown ramifications for both the health and economy of other countries. preparedness has been getting some attention. While many of us who have been avidly following the news on this virus are experienced preppers, there are many who are new to it. Some may have already done some prepping but are still lacking in supplies for many reasons(divorce, illness, job loss, relocation, etc). Some may be thinking that perhaps they should try to stock up on some stuff “just in case” they were to experience a “lockdown” as in China due to the pandemic spread of this virus or perhaps economic distress due to the disruption of the global economy. The possibility of experiencing a run on supplies as happens before hurricanes and other natural disasters can’t be underestimated. Although things appear to be pretty calm at present in the US(other than sporadic runs on face masks) one never knows what will happen. It could only take a local outbreak in an area such as NYC to raise the panic level here.

Reading some prepping web sites and articles could make a person give up in despair. So many people are just getting by without much in the way of income beyond meeting their basic needs. Some are on fixed incomes such as Social Security or Disability payments. They look at the web sites advertising freeze-dried #10 cans of meals, emergency generators and all sorts of prepper “gear” and they feel it is hopeless. What I’d like to do here is to point out all of the affordable stuff you can buy locally that will help with your prepping that is available to anyone who can come up with an extra $10 or $20 to spend on products that they will eventually use, whether during a disaster scenario, an extended economic downturn or just day to day living.Continue reading“Prepping at the Dollar Store, by Ani”

The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods

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SurvivalBlog presents another edition of The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods— a collection of news bits and pieces that are relevant to the modern survivalist and prepper from “JWR”. Our goal is to educate our readers, to help them to recognize emerging threats and to be better prepared for both disasters and negative societal trends. You can’t mitigate a risk if you haven’t first identified a risk. Today, we look at some more coronavirus news.

How Long Do Coronaviruses Survive on Surfaces?

Reader A.D. sent us this from MedicalNewsToday: Coronaviruses: How long can they survive on surfaces? Here is a key quote:

“The authors show that, depending on the material and the conditions, human coronaviruses can remain infectious from 2 hours to 9 days.

At temperatures of around 4°C or 39.2oF, certain versions of the coronavirus could remain viable for up to 28 days. At temperatures of 30–40°C (86–104°F), coronaviruses tended to persist for a shorter time.

At room temperature, a coronavirus responsible for the common cold (HCoV-229E) persisted significantly longer in 50% humidity than 30% humidity. Overall, the authors conclude:

“Human coronaviruses can remain infectious on inanimate surfaces at room temperature for up to 9 days. At a temperature of 30°C [86°F] or more, the duration of persistence is shorter. Veterinary coronaviruses have been shown to persist even longer for 28 d[ays].”

Patriot Nurse: Avoiding the Coronavirus

Avoiding the Coronavirus.

Chinese is Scrubbing Their Currency

Reader DSV spotted this: Cashless Agenda? China Is Scrubbing Cash Notes To Stop Virus Spreading So Its Paper Money Won’t Kill You

Supply Chain Chaos Unfolds at Major Chinese Ports

Reader C.M. sent this: Supply Chain Chaos Unfolds At Major Chinese Ports As Frozen Meat Containers Pile UpContinue reading“The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods”