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 the Second Amendment erosion in Virginia.

An Excellent Medical Lecture on the Wuhan Coronavirus

Reader M.M. sent a link to a lecture that removes a lot of conjecture: NCH Healthcare System presents: Coronavirus, A Rapid Evolving Situation with Dr. Gregory Poland. JWR’s Comment: Watching this is well-worth the 48-minute investment of your time!

Treat Burn First With Cool Running Water

Mom was right: To best treat a burn, first cool with running water, study shows.

Virginia Lawmakers Pass 7 Gun-Control Bills, More Coming

DSV sent his one: Virginia Lawmakers Pass 7 Gun-Control Bills With More Coming. The article begins:

“Ten days after over 20,000 peaceful Second Amendment supporters marched in front of the state house in opposition to newly-elected Democrats’ proposed gun-control legislation, Virginia lawmakers approved seven new gun control bills.

Virginia state representatives voted to approve numerous gun-control measures that had been enthusiastically supported by Virginia Governor Ralph Northam, ABC News reported.

Similar bills had already passed the state senate and all the gun-control measures pending are expected to quickly receive the Democratic governor’s signature.

One new law will require background checks for all gun sales, including private gun transfers and those bought at gun shows, WTVR reported.”

One Step Closer to a Batsuit for Soldiers

Linked over at the great Whatfinger.com news aggregation site: One Step Closer to a Batsuit for SoldiersContinue reading“The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

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“Give me one hundred preachers who fear nothing but sin and desire nothing but God, and I care not whether they be clergymen or laymen, they alone will shake the gates of Hell and set up the kingdom of Heaven upon Earth.” – John Wesley, Letter to Alexander Mather

Preparedness Notes for Wednesday — February 5, 2020

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On Feb. 5, 1869, the largest alluvial gold nugget in history, called the “Welcome Stranger“, is found in Moliagul, Victoria, Australia.  It weighed a whopping 97.14 kilograms.

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The flu still has me in its grip.  (Pardon the pun.) So today I’m omitting my usual Recommendations of the Week.

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. Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy (a $185 retail value),
  5. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,

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.

Post-Exposure Prevention (PEP) Protocol, by JJ in MI

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Everyone already knows about the Wuhan Coronavirus outbreak so I’ll skip an overview of what it is and why it’s dangerous. No doubt you’re also aware of the CDC’s recommended preventative measures of hand hygiene and avoiding close contact with those who may be infected. You may have also acquired items such as masks, goggles, or gloves (if you didn’t have enough already) as additional preventative measures, and those can help limit exposure when used properly, but they do not provide 100% protection either. You may also have considered social distancing, or even self-quarantine, but that’s not always possible – some will need to go to work, use public transportation, travel by plane, or otherwise interact in relatively close proximity with those that could be infected.

Given what is known so far about the Wuhan Coronavirus it’s probably premature, as well as somewhat socially unacceptable at this point, to don a full array of PPE before going to the grocery store or to the DMV to renew your driver’s license. But if you did suspect that you had been directly exposed to it, such as yourself or a loved one inadvertently getting too close to someone that was displaying the symptoms, is there anything you can do to lessen the chances of contracting it? Maybe, and if there was such a protocol it would be called post-exposure prevention, or PEP. As defined by wikipedia:

“Post-exposure prophylaxis, also known as post-exposure prevention (PEP), is any preventive medical treatment started after exposure to a pathogen in order to prevent the infection from occurring.”.

Currently there isn’t a PEP protocol from the CDC or other authorities for the Wuhan Coronavirus, but I’ll offer a plausible one based on studies done following the SARS and MERS coronavirus outbreaks, and based on those a suggestion for a new item or two you might consider adding to your Every Day Carry or Individual First-Aid Kits.Continue reading“Post-Exposure Prevention (PEP) Protocol, by JJ in MI”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

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“If we refuse to forgive, we have stepped into dangerous waters. First, refusing to forgive is to put ourselves in the place of God, as though vengeance were our prerogative, not his. Second, unforgiveness says God’s wrath is insufficient. For the unbeliever, we are saying that an eternity in hell is not enough; they need our slap in the face or cold shoulder to “even the scales” of justice. For the believer, we are saying that Christ’s humiliation and death are not enough. In other words, we shake our fists at God and say, “Your standards may have been satisfied, but my standard is higher!” Finally, refusing to forgive is the highest form of arrogance. Here we stand forgiven. And as we bask in the forgiveness of a perfectly holy and righteous God, we turn to our brother and say, “My sins are forgivable, but yours are not.” In other words, we act as though the sins of others are too significant to forgive while simultaneously believing that ours are not significant enough to matter.” – Rev. Voddie T. Baucham, Jr.

Preparedness Notes for Tuesday — February 4, 2020

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On this day in 1789, George Washington became the first and only president to be unanimously elected by the Electoral College. This was repeated on this same day in 1792. Because of the way the early American voting procedure worked, the electors cast two votes with no distinction for president or vice president. Washington was chosen by all of the electors and is considered to have been unanimously elected. Of the others on the ballots, Adams had the most votes and thus became the vice president.

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I’m now on Day Seven of my flu travail. Since I still haven’t fully recovered, I am omitting Tuesday’s usual News From The American Redoubt column. Thanks for your patience.

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. Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy (a $185 retail value),
  5. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,

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.

Post-TEOTWAWKI Pest Control – Part 2, by J.S.R.

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

Rocky Mountain spotted fever (RMSF) and Lyme disease are two bacterial tick-borne infections of particular concern. The ticks that transmit both of these diseases are found all over the United States. The CDC states that RMSF is most common in Arizona, Missouri, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Tennessee, and North Carolina. After the three- to twelve-day incubation period, the early signs (days 1-4) of RMSF include a high fever, severe headache, gastrointestinal symptoms (nausea, vomiting, anorexia), and edema around the eyes and on the back of the hands. Two to five days after symptoms begin, the rash associated with RMSF first appears. This rash is diagnostic, but not essential. In other words, the small, flat, pink, non-itchy spots that first appear on the wrists, forearms, and ankles do not occur with other illnesses. This rash sometimes spreads to the trunk, palms of the hands, and soles of the feet, but keep in mind that 10% of patients never develop this rash. When the rash color turns from red to purple, it signals severe progression of the disease. Treatment should have begun long ago. Subsequently appearing are altered mental status, cerebral edema, pulmonary edema and respiratory distress, necrosis (tissue death requiring amputation), and kidney failure. If there is any suspicion of RMSF, begin treatment immediately. Delay may be fatal.

The CDC also indicates that Lyme disease occurs primarily in the New England states. However, there are numerous anecdotal reports of high numbers of people contracting Lyme disease in Utah and Idaho as well. Diagnosis of Lyme disease is difficult because the symptoms are similar to many other illnesses—rashes, headaches, and muscle and joint aches. An incubation period lasting up to thirty days only complicates matters. While recalling a tick bite would facilitate diagnosis, over 60% of patients don’t remember being bitten. The classic early sign is the characteristic bullseye rash around the site of the bite. Other early common signs are meningitis or inflammation of the heart muscle. Unfortunately, these won’t be easily identified outside a hospital setting. Symptoms of severe arthritis involving multiple joints and chronic meningitis—headaches, problems in thinking clearly, and sleepiness—appear later.

Continue reading“Post-TEOTWAWKI Pest Control – Part 2, by J.S.R.”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

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“Are we at last brought to such a humiliating and debasing degradation, that we cannot be trusted with arms for our own defence? Where is the difference between having our arms in our own possession and under our own direction, and having them under the management of Congress? If our defence be the real object of having those arms, in whose hands can they be trusted with more propriety, or equal safety to us, as in our own hands?” – Patrick Henry, speech on June 9, 1788

Preparedness Notes for Monday — February 3, 2020

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Pardon the pun, but we’ve “started off with a bang.” My web-based mail order business was launched on Saturday morning, selling carefully selected pre-1899 guns. It is called Elk Creek Company. The ElkCreekCompany.net web site is up and running, and the attached credit card processing system is taking orders. Consult your state and local laws before ordering, but in most cases these Federally-exempt antiques can be mailed right to your door with no paperwork!  We started with more than 74 antique guns listed, but at least eight have already sold or are now on hold for individual customers. (A few folks prefer to pay with precious metals or with U.S. Postal Service Money Orders. The “ON HOLD” notations indicate the time lag for mailing those payments.

Some of these guns have been in my personal collection for more than 20 years. Nearly all of them are chambered in cartridges that are still factory made.  At the rate that sales began, it looks like I may have to run the business alternating “one month on, and two months off”, just to keep up a good inventory.

If you have any pre-1899 cartridge guns that you like to have me sell for you on consignment, then let me know!

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And speaking of spin-off businesses, my #1 Son wrote to tell me about a new listing at his SurvivalRealty.com web site:  An ocean front solar powered lodge on an island in Alaska.

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It appears that DJT’s impeachment trial will soon come to an end with a not guilty verdict. But rumor has it that the Democrats are already planning a second impeachment. This time, Rep. Schiff claims that a Whistleblower found a very damaging piece of evidence in a wastebasket in Trump’s White House bedroom.

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Because I’m still sick abed with the flu, I won’t be posting my usual Economics & Investing column. But I am posting the Writing Contest judging results and a product review from the tireless Pat Cascio.

 

Ruger’s Model 57, by Pat Cascio

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As a general rule, I don’t like surprises of any kind. In my case, most of the time, a surprise wasn’t something good – at least in my eyes! But on December 31st, 2019, I was pleasantly surprised to get a press release from Ruger announcing an end-of-the-year surprise, to wit, their brand new handgun chambered in the high velocity 5.7x28mm centerfire. They sure kept a closed mouth on this one. I didn’t get any kind of a hint this gun was coming out – nor did many other gun writers hear about it.

At first glance, the Model 57 looks like a long-slide Security 9 from Ruger, but this is something truly new and special. And, as soon as you pick up the 57, the light weight will let you know this isn’t a 9mm handgun.

The 5.7mm round has been around about 30 years, but no big name handgun maker other than FN bothered to chamber anything in 5.7mm. It looks like a reduced sized 5.56mm round – no kidding. I’ve owned a couple firearms chambered in 5.7mm – both made by FN, but it was their little PS-90 carbine chambered in 5.7mm that caught my eye. Plus, with that 50-round magazine on top – what’s not to like? (They make 10-round and 30-rd mags as well.) I found a source – at that time – that was selling the 50-round magazines for $10 – needless to say, I stocked-up on a lot of them at that time. Alas, I got stupid one day and sold that handy little carbine – you see, I’m smart, just not all the time.

I think what I really like best about the 5.7mm round is that, you can easily hit man-sized targets out to 150-yards, and there was no recoil to speak of. Maybe you can’t take out any big game, but it would sure give cause for someone out there shooting at you, if you returned fire with the little 5.7mm round. They’d surely be praying they were some place else when the lead starting coming at them.Continue reading“Ruger’s Model 57, by Pat Cascio”

Writing Contest Judging Completed (Round 86)

We’ve completed the judging for Round 86 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest.

First Prize goes to St. Funogas, for his two-part article that ran Jan. 9-10, 2020: Rocket Water Heater – Part and Part 2.  His prizes will include:

  1. A $3,000 gift certificate towards a Sol-Ark Solar Generator from veteran-owned Portable Solar LLC. The only EMP Hardened Solar Generator System available to the public.
  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 goes to JMD for: Planning Your Escape – Parts 1-5 . His prizes will include:

  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 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.
  3. 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,
  4. A $300 purchase credit for any of the products from EMPShield.com
  5. A Three-Day Deluxe Emergency Kit from Emergency Essentials (a $190 value),
  6. 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).
  7. An assortment of products along with a one hour consultation on health and wellness from Pruitt’s Tree Resin (a $265 value).

Third Prize goes to V.F. for Living Off The Grid – Part 1 and Part 2. Her prizes will include:

  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. Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy (a $185 retail value),
  5. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  6. Mayflower Trading is donating a $200 gift certificate for homesteading appliances.

Honorable Mention prizes ($30 Amazon Gift e-cards) go to the following articles:

Round 87 has already begun. Please share your knowledge, and enter the judging. You won’t know if your article will be deemed a winner, unless you try!

Recipe of the Week: Cream of Potato Soup

This week’s recipe is for a Cream of Potato Soup. It is a recipe excerpted from the scarce book Nine Hundred Successful Recipes, by Lulu Thompson Silvernail. This book, from my own book collection, was published in 1923. A recent change in U.S. copyright law now puts most pre-1925 books in the public domain.

Lulu Thompson Silvernail’s emphasis in this book was recipes that included hard red winter wheat flour. This entire recipe book is just part of the extensive bonus content that is included in this year’s SurvivalBlog archive waterproof USB stick. Note: The USB sticks are now in stock, but selling quickly, so get yours soon, before they sell out. There were just 45 left in stock, when I last checked.)

Ingredients
  • 3 medium-sized potatoes, peeled
  • 3-1/2 cups rich milk
  • 1 tablespoon flour
  • 
3 tablespoons butter
  • 2 tablespoons grated or scraped onion
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/8 teaspoon white pepper
  • Dash of cayenne pepper
  • 2 tablespoons finely chopped celery hearts
Directions

Boil potatoes until tender and then run through a ricer or sieve into a saucepan. Add milk to potatoes. Mix flour, butter, grated onion, salt, pepper, and celery together. Add this to the potato-milk mixture. Place over fire and cook slowly until mixture thickens, stirring occasionally.
Note: Onion may be peeled, cut in two and with a spoon scraped in mush form. The celery must be very tender and chopped very fine.
This recipe can easily be doubled or quadrupled, to serve large groups. But be careful not to over-season it.

Serving

Serve hot.

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Do you have a favorite recipe that would be of interest to SurvivalBlog readers? In this weekly recipe column we place emphasis on recipes that use long term storage foods, recipes for wild game, dutch oven and slow cooker recipes, and any that use home garden produce. If you have any favorite recipes, then please send them via e-mail. Thanks!

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

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“Your pretended fear lest error should step in, is like the man who would keep all wine out of the country, lest men should be drunk. It will be found an unjust and unwise jealousy to deprive a man of his natural liberty upon a supposition he may abuse it. When he doth abuse it, judge.” – Oliver Cromwell

Preparedness Notes for Sunday — February 2, 2020

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February 2nd is the birthday of Ayn Rand (born Alisa Zinov’yevna Rosenbaum in 1905), died March 6, 1982. She is of course remembered for her novel Atlas Shrugged, which is considered a Libertarian classic. While I sharply disagree with her views on religion (since she was an atheist), I admire both her skill as a writer and her ability to articulate some core precepts of human liberty.

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I’m still down with the flu, so I won’t be posting anything but this top note and a quote today. Sorry!  The feature Post-TEOTWAWKI Pest Control – Part 2, by J.S.R. should be posted on Tuesday, February 4, 2020.

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“Masters, give unto your servants that which is just and equal; knowing that ye also have a Master in heaven.

Continue in prayer, and watch in the same with thanksgiving;

Withal praying also for us, that God would open unto us a door of utterance, to speak the mystery of Christ, for which I am also in bonds:

That I may make it manifest, as I ought to speak.

Walk in wisdom toward them that are without, redeeming the time.

Let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man.” – Colossians 4:1-6 (KJV)