Letter Re: A Prepper’s Holiday

As hinted by C.E.B’s article, Pesach (Passover) and Sukkot (Festival of Booths) are Jewish holidays — two of the three major festivals — in the Jewish calendar. That calendar is a Lunar/Solar calendar that does not correspond with the Gregorian calendar, which is why which holiday dates vary each year in the Gregorian calendar. Watching and marking the phases of the moon is not all there is to the Jewish calendar.

Before the calendar’s calculations were settled by Hillel II in the fourth century the first sliver of the new moon was reported to the Sanhedrin. Based on the report of two witnesses who were both reliable and independent of each other the Sanhedrin declared it to be the first day of the month (Rosh Chodesh). A shofar (ram’s horn) was ritually blown and messengers carried the announcement. Rosh Chodesh is, after all, a festival day each month.

However, it is most important to understand that the Jewish calendar is not a lunar calendar. A lunar month is about 29.5 days. Twelve of them only amounts to 354 days so another 11 or 12 days or so would be needed to make it correspond with the 365.25 day solar year. The difference gets even worse when simplified too much by using 29 days instead of 29.5 days per lunar month. Without intercalated days to compensate for this difference the Torah-mandated seasonal (solar) holidays would be out of sync by nearly two weeks every year. Using a 13-month lunar year is just as bad in the other direction: too many days instead of too few. With ancient Jews spread throughout the world (diaspora) getting word of the new month from declarations by the Sanhedrin simply could not work. Hence, the Jewish calendar.

Taking C.E.B.’s assumption that ordering delivery of a current calendar may become difficult or even impossible in SHTF conditions lasting longer than a year, having personally printed copies of the Jewish calendar may be as important to many people as having hard copies of selected books instead of depending on PDFs or other electronic versions.

There are several Jewish perpetual calendar web sites one could go to generate and print several years of calendars. One great one I recommend is at HebCal.com. Aside from selecting the Gregorian or Hebrew calendar year to generate, selections exist to show holidays, Rosh Chodesh, fast days, special Shabbos days, and so on. It will also generate candle lighting times for your local zip code’s time zone. There are other options.

The web page with the calendar generated can be printed of course, but there are also download format options for Windows, Mac OS, Google Calendar, Yahoo! Calendar, and others. Furthermore, click the next month link or next year link at the top to advance the calendar for the next printout or download.

As for one last detail from C.E.B.’s article, it isn’t likely that those who pay attention will lose track of which day of the week it will be. The Jewish names of the weekdays were always First, Second, Third, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Shabbos! – Larry R.

Auction Update: PVS-14 Gen 3+ Night Vision Scope to Benefit C.R.O.S.S. Ministries

CURRENT BID is $3,600 (Bid by Reader D.J.G.)

Simply e-mail us your bids. I will post regular updates on the bidding. The final deadline will be Midnight EST on Monday, March 11, 2013. Thanks for your generous bids in support of C.R.O.S.S. Ministries.

We are continuing a benefit auction of a brand new AN/PVS-14 Gen 3+ Night Vision Scope. All proceeds (100% of your bid) will be donated to C.R.O.S.S. Ministries. (A very worthy Christian ministry that is sharing the Gospel of Christ in South Sudan. Their outreach method is unique: They are teaching rural villagers tactical marksmanship, water purification, and firefighting skills, free of charge.)

The monocular is one of these. (The same model that we use here at the Rawles Ranch.) These night vision scopes normally retail for around $3,600. (Although Ready Made Resources sells them at the discounted price of $2,695.) This monocular was kindly donated by Ready Made Resources, in cooperation with Night Ops Tactical.

Odds ‘n Sods:

Reader John J. liked this piece that ran last November over at The Art of Manliness: How to Bug-In: What You Need to Know to Survive a Grid-Down Disaster

   o o o

This series of videos shows that it is no longer fun to live within 60 miles of the Mexican border.

   o o o

Will states go where Congress hasn’t on gun laws?

   o o o

Synching the US Power Grid to Protect Against Blackouts. I have always suspected that the planned inter-tie between the Eastern and Western power grids had an ulterior motive. Methinks this is all about Power, and not the sort that is measured in megawatts.

   o o o

Reader F. G. sent: Graham introduces background check bill with NRA backing. F.G.’s comment: “[After this enacted,] watch how quickly the Fed-Gov / ObamaCare approved version of what constitutes ‘mental illness’ changes!”

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.

Of the increase of [his] government and peace [there shall be] no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.” – Isaiah 9:6-7 (KJV)

Note from JWR:

Today we present another entry for Round 45 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize: A.) Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate, good for any one, two, or three course. (A $1,195 value.) B.) A course certificate from onPoint Tactical. This certificate will be 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, and C.) Two cases of Mountain House freeze dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources. (A $350 value.) D.) a $300 gift certificate from CJL Enterprize, for any of their military surplus gear, E.) A 9-Tray Excalibur Food Dehydrator from Safecastle.com (a $300 value), and F.) A $250 gift certificate from Sunflower Ammo. and G.) A $200 gift certificate, donated by Shelf Reliance.

Second Prize: A.) A gift certificate worth $1,000, courtesy of Spec Ops Brand, B.) A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training. Together, these have a retail value of $589. C.) A FloJak FP-50 stainless steel hand well pump (a $600 value), courtesy of FloJak.com. D.) A “grab bag” of preparedness gear and books from Jim’s Amazing Secret Bunker of Redundant Redundancy (JASBORR) with a retail value of at least $300, E.) A $250 gift card from Emergency Essentials and F.) Two cases of Meals, Ready to Eat (MREs), courtesy of CampingSurvival.com (a $180 value).

Third Prize: A.) A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21. (This filter system is a $275 value.), B.) A large handmade clothes drying rack, a washboard and a Homesteading for Beginners DVD, all courtesy of The Homestead Store, with a combined value of $206, C.) Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy. This is a $185 retail value, D.) A Commence Fire! emergency stove with three tinder refill kits. (A $160 value. E.) A Tactical Trauma Bag #3 from JRH Enterprises (a $200 value), and F.) Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security.

Round 45 ends on March 31st, 2013, 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.

OPSEC and the Dangers of People You Thought Were Like-Minded, by R.S.O. in Arizona

Operational Security (OPSEC) has been around since the first Stone Age battles were fought. In an effort to provide the element of surprise and in order to keep what one had only those that need to know where told. I have always considered my friends and/or people I associate with and of what I considered similar moral fortitude worthy of my trust when it came to discussion of prepping. However I have recently discovered that not everyone is of the same mindset.

First a little back ground on me. I moved out at 18 and went on to higher education like many. I worked part time retail jobs and went to school then I was in a motorcycle accident and couldn’t get thing back on track. I joined the U.S. Army and served 2-1/2 years as an Airborne Infantryman (11B1P) and unit Armorer. After an Honorable medical discharge, I moved home and after two months living with mom and dad and not being able to find a job. I worked in the retail firearms industry for some very big names for more than eight years. I then followed my dream of a career in Law Enforcement where I have been for the last five years.

This is not your typical OPSEC that we are talking about. You know where you don’t let the boxes from your favorite long term storage company or the new big screen television stick out of the trash can. This is OPSEC regarding people you invite into your home. Whether they are family, friends, neighbors, co-workers, business professionals you deal with on a regular basis people you share common hobbies with and that may seem to have the same ethical way of thinking. The people who given the opportunity do the right thing do the right thing in our non-state of emergency day to day life. They buy the homeless person a burger, help the little old lady put the gallon of milk in her car, are in a job that is for the benefit of society, they may be Doctors, Law Enforcement, Military, or Fire Fighters. You know the types people who help people in their day to day lives.

I was recently told by an individual that I held to a higher standard than most people in the community, that he and another person on my list of Friends that I thought were like minded and trusted confidants were Prepping. You can imagine the joy these two individuals are well respected in the community that I participate in and many of my friends participate in. The first is a Sales representative for an international firearms company (Mr. Gun) and the other is a Successful business owner (Mr. Business). Names withheld for OPSEC and they are after all still friends, however they may never know what hides behind door number 1 at my house or where my family and I will end up if the Schumer does Hit the Fan.

As I’m sitting in the office of Mr. Business and we are discussing our two biggest common interest shooting sports and guns. He drops the bomb that he and Mr. Gun are Prepping for when “The Stuff Hits The Fan.” At this point I’m thinking alright I have just added two very important people to my pool of resources and possibly to my group should anything happen. I may also point out that both are in my opinion and in the opinion of many exceptional well trained, practiced, and experienced with engaging multiple threats at close distance with a handgun. Mr. Gun is also very capable with a rifle and shotgun at distance. Then he says those dreaded words “we are making notes of people we know who are Prepping and we will just go to their place and take what we need.”  I had to use every ounce of strength in my person to keep my jaw from hitting the floor and letting my secret be known. These two have told me that if I ever need anything just ask and if they could they would. In fact Mr. Gun loaned me $50 no questions asked which was paid back after my lunch break. We worked together for more than years. Chances are they have a good idea what I have for defense and my capabilities.

“Wow!”, right? Here we have two respected individuals that I have known for over 12 years talking about just taking what they need/want from their own friends. Then my mind goes into overdrive what have I told them, what do they know, what if they come to my house will my kids just open the door for them. Heck my kids call Mr. Business “Uncle.” How do I tell them not to tell them what we have or what we are doing to Prepare. I now have to figure out a way to tell my family that some of the trusted people in our lives are not to be trusted when TSHTF and that we really don’t know who these people are. I also now have to figure a way to have my kids go about as nothing has changed when we are around these two individuals.

Sounds like just a bad day right? Well it gets worse I’m at work later the same week and talking with one of my partners we are discussing firearms, as they pertain to our current profession and which ones we like. He starts talking about the television show Preppers and how he thinks it’s a good idea so he’s trying to stalk up on ammo but with the current state of things it’s difficult. Again I start to get that happy felling of finding another like-minded person. Then the conversation from earlier that week flashes to the front of my mind. So I tell him I have about 400 rounds of this so I can practice for re-qualification later this year and 100 rounds of that just to have around and a few .22 LR around. I seriously down played the amount on purpose trying to feel the waters. Then he comes out and says he just wants enough so he can go take more ammo and food from other people he knows that are stalking up. What did I just hear this is a guy I work with, a guy I trust my life with on a daily basis. I think to myself maybe I didn’t hear him correctly so I asked if he had any food set aside like they do in the show. The answer I was hoping for did not come he just stated that he would eat what he had and when that ran out just go and take it for people who told him they were prepping or those that he thought may have extra. He was adamant that he would take it by force if need be. At this point I am about to fall out of my chair here is a person who is supposed to uphold the law talking about taking other peoples life for food.

While discussing how my inventory was going and that I am close to a goal anther co-worker entered the area we were working in and started asking questions because we were looking at some new tactical gear for our personal use luckily the gear could have been for work also. I was fending off the probing questions with great flair.  Here is how the conversation went and a few example questions from that day:

Question 1: Are you guys preppers? Answer 1. I Look at my partner with the OPSEC look and ask in reply: “What is that?”

Question 2: “You know like the television show ‘Preppers’ on National Geographic.” My reply: “Never heard of it. I will have to check it out.”

Question 3: :”Do you have any food stored? My reply: “I went to the store last night and bought steak for dinner is that what you mean?

Question 4: “No. You know, like stored water? My reply: “I have a 10,000 gallon swimming pool, will that work”?

“Yes that should be good.”

Needless to say I felt bad about misleading hi. He sounds genuine but with my recent let down of learning that close personal friends and having no real way other than sarcasm and a poor attempt at wit to try and weed out the true prepper from the fisherman looking for the next Honey Hole to add to his list of house to hit when things get bad. I may get back with him and do some probing of my own. He has no skills that are of benefit to me or my group but that won’t stop me from making an ally.

I am now stuck with the dilemma of how to weed out the people who seem to be of the same mindset from the people who are of the same mindset. The question of how to let my kids know that it’s ok to trust Mr. and Mrs. Soandso right now but when things go south they are not to be trusted ways heavy on me and I have yet to do it. Telling them that they only want our food and don’t care how we survive after they take it is going to be difficult.

The fishers need to be turned be careful in how you approached this. Take time, pray, and talk to others that it will effect if these people come knocking when TSHTF. If you don’t think you can turn them don’t give them a reason to come to your door.

Thought for the day. They may be lifelong friends but are they friends for a long life? Be careful divulging to people you trust they may just be the ones coming to take what you have when the chips are down and TSHTF. If they want your help, help. Be cautious when the probing questions start get good information take some time turn it around and ask them questions make it seem as if they just planted the prepper seed, when the time is right and your sure OPSEC is good let them in to your little secret.

As always stay alert and Prepare for the Worst and Pray for the Best.

Letter Re: Sodium Chloride IV Bag Expiry Dates

JWR:
I know you are not a medical doctor, but I had a question about Sodium Chloride .9% IV bags.  They have an Expiration date on them.  Is this information valid.  It is sterile water and salt so could something like that go bad?  Is it because the plastic might leech something out over time?   We just had a lovely “stick” class with my group where we each learned how to put in an IV on each other.  We determined who was good at it, and who should never, ever approach people with a needle.    

Each person was out of pocket for only about $11 for IV bag, butterfly infusion set, and tubing.  Already had alcohol wipes and latex gloves, so it was pretty cheap, but invaluable knowledge.  One of our group is an RN so we did have some medical assistance. 
 
Thanks in advance for the answer on the IV bags.  Really appreciate what you do. – A.J.

JWR Replies: The makers’ expiry dates are absurdly short. The NaCl isn’t going to magically drop out of solution on that date.  I wouldn’t hesitate to use a bag that has been stored properly (in the dark) that is several years “out of date”, as long as the solution looks clear. (No visible floaters or discoloration.)

Two Letters Re: Surviving Snowmageddon

Dear JWR:
You don’t always need a snow plow to to free up the streets in a snow-bound neighborhood. I found a video that shows a U.S. military surplus M35 2-1/2 Ton (“Deuce and a Half”) truck being used to pack down snow. – Solar Guy

 

Mr. Rawles,
We in dry Central Texas are having the opposite problem from your “Snowmageddon” contributors: Dry wind-blizzards. On Monday, February 25th we had dry, sunny weather combined with high winds all day and night.

I stepped outside after lunch to check the mail. Uhh-Ohh. The brush pile fire we had burned almost two weeks before, and foolishly thought to be extinguished, threw wind-driven sparks out to a nearby unburned brush pile. The new fire had been burning for a half-hour, but the smoke was going away from the house. My spouse and I were oblivious that a roof-high, whipping fire was outside, while we ate lunch just two hundred yards away! When juniper (here called “cedar”) burns, it flares up to a scary inferno of flames even in mild, damp weather.

My husband got the tractor and frantically covered the pile with dirt, using the loader. I grabbed chain saws, water hoses, the air tank for the tractor tire. But the trouble wasn’t over, cinders had blown into the juniper forest! I ran into the woods and stomped/wetted a few smoldering spots. The cinders had traveled 140 feet and, thankfully, hadn’t ignited into flames. The kids stepped off the school bus and searched the woods for any other smoldering spots, none found.

I sat out all night in the truck, with shovel/water buckets, in case there was a flare-up in the cold, whipping wind. My 4G Tablet was entertainment, and served as an alarm for short catnaps. My Jack Russell Terrier, a whip-smart little companion, kept my lap and hands warm.

Lessons: (1) I will never again allow a burn-pile to be covered with dirt and smolder. Buried logs and stumps can smolder for months! One will discover how dangerous this is when you get a dry spell and a wind storm. I will make sure future burned-up piles are promptly knocked down and thoroughly extinguished. (2) Since the burn-pile was very near the county road, I was disappointed that no passers-by stopped to offer help, nor noticed the unattended flames, while we were lunching, and inform us of the problem. As other contributors have noted, get to know your neighbors well, make sure they have your phone numbers.

Postscript: The high winds picked up again, a week later, (March 5) and blew the dirt off the pile, exposing embers from last week’s accidental fire. After piling more dirt on, we are waiting for forecasted rain this weekend so we can tear down this dangerous pile of buried embers, allow the old stumps to burn and extinguish it for good. – Sarah in Central Texas

Update on The New Israeli E-Lander (Tavor) Steel AR Magazines

Back on January 13, 2013 I mentioned the availability of steel AR-15/M16-compatible Tavor magazines, made in Israel, being sold by a company in the U.S. called The Mako Group. These were priced at $18.70 each. I personally ordered more than 100 of them on January 11th. My order just arrived on March 7th.

I was very pleased with the fit and finish of the magazines. Mine came with white followers. Their finish was glossy black and quite slick feeling. They have gave reinforced magazine retainer tabs. The E-Lander company maintains stringent military specifications and they have ISO certified and NQA certified (TS16949) processes.

I test fit several 30 round E-Lander magazines (both loaded and unloaded) in the magazine wells of six ARs here at the Rawles Ranch. I should mention that their lower receivers on these ARs came from four different makers. The magazines went into all six lowers with no difficulty whatsoever, and they dropped free with a touch of the magazine release. I also test fired one full magazine, and it fed wonderfully. Since they are steel, these magazines should give a lifetime of reliable service.

So the good news is that they ARE shipping, but they are obviously deluged with orders and that is causing long delays. Be patient, folks! We can safely assume that Mako Group is shipping orders sequentially from the date that orders are placed. So anyone who ordered their magazines from Mako during the week of January 13th should be seeing the Big Brown Truck of Joy fairly soon. And for anyone who orders any henceforth, you can expect at least a two month delay.

One odd thing that I noticed was that the magazines that I received were all marked “M.D. 02.13” So with a February manufacture date, these would have had to have been shipped to New York via air freight. This leaves me convinced that The Mako Group is doing their best to fill orders in a timely manner. But they obviously have a LOT of orders, and have developed a two month+ backlog.

Delayed orders are just part of life in the era of BHO, Dianne Feinstein, and Piers Morgan. Get used it. There will be continuing shortages, delays, and deep back-orders. I expect this situation to continue for at least a year. It will take that long for the manufacturers and importers to catch up. BTW, America’s gun hating television talking heads all deserve awards for boosting gun, ammunition, and magazine sales to all-time highs. Because of those oh-so-vocal gun grabbers there will be an extra two million AR-15s produced in the U.S. this year, and untold millions of full capacity magazines made or imported. That just warms my heart.

To their credit, The Mako Group did not raise their prices after the Sandy Hook massacre. They could have easily cashed in on the crisis and doubled their prices, but they left them right at $18.70 each. That tells me a lot of about the company’s management. Bottom line: The E-Lander magazines are worth the long wait. – J.W.R.

Auction Update: PVS-14 Gen 3+ Night Vision Scope to Benefit C.R.O.S.S. Ministries

CURRENT BID is $3,600 (Bid by Reader D.J.G.)

Simply e-mail us your bids. I will post regular updates on the bidding. The final deadline will be Midnight EST on Monday, March 11, 2013. Thanks for your generous bids in support of C.R.O.S.S. Ministries.

We are continuing a benefit auction of a brand new AN/PVS-14 Gen 3+ Night Vision Scope. All proceeds (100% of your bid) will be donated to C.R.O.S.S. Ministries. (A very worthy Christian ministry that is sharing the Gospel of Christ in South Sudan. Their outreach method is unique: They are teaching rural villagers tactical marksmanship, water purification, and firefighting skills, free of charge.)

The monocular is one of these. (The same model that we use here at the Rawles Ranch.) These night vision scopes normally retail for around $3,600. (Although Ready Made Resources sells them at the discounted price of $2,695.) This monocular was kindly donated by Ready Made Resources, in cooperation with Night Ops Tactical.

Economics and Investing:

Debt based delusion: Fed spending far outstripping revenues, balance of trade, and business inventories decline.

Analyst: Bitcoin Took A Key Step Towards Going Mainstream, And That’s Why It’s Been Going Crazy The Last Two Day . Wow!: I just checked at CoinMill and the BTC to USD ratio was at 40.91 to one! (Almost $41 to buy one BitCoin.)

Gold Core reports: Russia, Korea And Central Banks Accumulate Gold On Dip Below $1,600/oz

Items from The Economatrix:

Service Industries In US Grow At Fastest Pace In A Year

JPMorgan:  The Consumer Spending Slowdown Is Here

Billionaires Dumping US Stocks, Economist Knows Why

Odds ‘n Sods:

K. mentioned a great piece over at the Backwoods Home web site: Low-cost raised beds. [JWR Adds: That design will work for a couple of seasons. But in the long run it has “more work” written all over it. Here in the Inland Northwest, the preferred material for building raised beds is usually 2″ thick cedar planks. Most of the small cedar mill operations have a “seconds” pile where they sell random-length boards that don’t meet marketable standards, for various reasons. (Wane, checking, punky spots, et cetera.) This lumber sells for just a small fraction of the cost of the higher grades. With each $80 to $100 trailer load of cedar “seconds” I’m able to build four raised beds that are 12 feet long, 4 feet wide and 18″ deep. They will last for decades, even in our wet climate. OBTW, I always staple on 1/4″ mesh wire netting to the bottom of each bed to keep the moles out. ]

   o o o

Mike Williamson sent a link to a graphic that illustrates the TSA’s latest “though shalt nots” for penknives on commercial airliners. It is bothersome that not only must the The Powers That Be make the sheeple jump through flame-filled hoops, but they keep changing the specifications of the hoops.

   o o o

Rand Paul Filibuster: Hour By Hour Footage Archive. Meanwhile, some “moderate” Republicans (read: RINOs) sided with BHO & Company. I was glad to see that a few left-wingers chimed in, in support of Rand Paul.

   o o o

I noticed an interesting ongoing thread over at The Mental Militia forums: Creating Hidden Storage

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“This morning, I’m pleased to join the President, the Vice President, and countless Americans in calling on Congress to enact legislation addressing gun violence – including measures to require universal background checks, impose tough penalties on gun traffickers, protect law enforcement officers by addressing armor-piercing ammunition, ban high-capacity magazines and military-style assault weapons, and eliminate misguided restrictions that require federal agents to allow the importation of dangerous weapons simply because of their age.” – Attorney General Eric Holder

Note from JWR:

Today we present another two entries for Round 45 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize: A.) Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate, good for any one, two, or three course. (A $1,195 value.) B.) A course certificate from onPoint Tactical. This certificate will be 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, and C.) Two cases of Mountain House freeze dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources. (A $350 value.) D.) a $300 gift certificate from CJL Enterprize, for any of their military surplus gear, E.) A 9-Tray Excalibur Food Dehydrator from Safecastle.com (a $300 value), and F.) A $250 gift certificate from Sunflower Ammo. and G.) A $200 gift certificate, donated by Shelf Reliance.

Second Prize: A.) A gift certificate worth $1,000, courtesy of Spec Ops Brand, B.) A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training. Together, these have a retail value of $589. C.) A FloJak FP-50 stainless steel hand well pump (a $600 value), courtesy of FloJak.com. D.) A “grab bag” of preparedness gear and books from Jim’s Amazing Secret Bunker of Redundant Redundancy (JASBORR) with a retail value of at least $300, E.) A $250 gift card from Emergency Essentials and F.) Two cases of Meals, Ready to Eat (MREs), courtesy of CampingSurvival.com (a $180 value).

Third Prize: A.) A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21. (This filter system is a $275 value.), B.) A large handmade clothes drying rack, a washboard and a Homesteading for Beginners DVD, all courtesy of The Homestead Store, with a combined value of $206, C.) Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy. This is a $185 retail value, D.) A Commence Fire! emergency stove with three tinder refill kits. (A $160 value. E.) A Tactical Trauma Bag #3 from JRH Enterprises (a $200 value), and F.) Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security.

Round 45 ends on March 31st, 2013, 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.