Archives: September 2013

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When things go wrong, you don’t want your vehicle’s fuel gauge to look like this.  Its a good idea to keep your fuel tank half full for a number of good reasons.

During an emergency, you may not be able to refuel when you need to.  This could be due to a power outage, fuel shortage, civil unrest, or other factors.  Also, if an evacuation is called for (ex. hurricane), you want to have enough fuel to get out of town and on your way to safety.  That’s why many knowledgeable experts recommend you keep your fuel tank half full.  Sure, it means more frequent trips to the gas station but its a small price to pay for being more resilient.

Listen, I am guilty of letting my tank get down to the last gallon or two so this is one piece of advice that I am implementing myself.  My suggestion is that you start doing this now in order to save yourself from running out during an emergency.

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Kevin over at Misfires and Light Strikes shared a really good link with me that discussed the top five newbie prepper mistakes make.  You can read the full article by going here but here are the top five:

  1. Going it Alone
  2. Overestimating Physical Readiness
  3. Ignoring Water
  4. Focusing On Gear Over Knowledge and Skills
  5. Panic

Think about how you can avoid these newbie prepper mistakes and take time to increase your understanding.

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Yes indeed, preparation is going corporate.

Credit: Christopher Wink

Today, there was an emergency preparedness event where I work that featured a handful of exhibitors.  This was a part of National Preparedness Month which is a part of FEMA‘s effort to get more Americans better prepared.  Overall it was a modest event with a handful of participants, but the more important aspect of the event was the fact it was taking place.

The company I work at is a large (>18,000 employee) investment brokerage company headquartered in…San Francisco.  Normally one would associate financial firms to be more concerned with golf, fine arts, and feel-good commercials about investing in the future.  However, issues like business continuity are a major concern for large Fortune 500 companies, so having prepared employees makes sense.  After all, businesses can’t run for very long without people.

This shows that being prepared for disasters is not just for loners who live in rural counties.  Everybody can benefit from being better prepared, especially those of us who live and work in major cities.

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When I was back in Minnesota, I finally had a chance to watch this Doomsday Preppers in my hotel room.

Ok, where to start?

My overall impression of the show is that the people in it are being exploited and ridiculed by National Geographic.  Like most TV shows, it relies on generous helpings of sensationalism to attract an audience.  I found many of the people in the episodes I watched to be a bit out of balance, some even struck me as extreme.  The common theme was preparation for various doomsday scenarios where the preppers would retreat to a remote site and fend off crazed survivors.  In a sense, Doomsday Preppers reminded me of Taboo (another NatGeo series) with a similar cast of oddballs and misfits.

My advice is to consider the source of the information and regard it as for entertainment purposes only.  National Geographic is owned by a Mainstream Media channel (Fox) which is primarily interested in ratings and profits.  The show reflects that and is chiefly designed to move product for its primary advertisers who hope to cash in on the increasing popularity of prepping.  Any useful information presented in that show or on its associated website should be considered a byproduct of television production.

Instead of passively watching kooks and loners don camouflage while they vacuum seal supplies, pick up some books on the subject.  I’ve reviewed two such books here and here, currently I am reading through another one that will be reviewed soon.  Also, there are many good websites that I have linked on my Resources page that offer a wealth of practical advice on handling scenarios you are more likely to face than societal collapse.  Part of taking responsibility for yourself is to learn for yourself and critically assess what is being presented to you.  Not everything you see on TV, hear on the radio, or read on the internet is going to be helpful.  The best thing you can do is gather information from a wide range of sources and determine what information is most applicable to your situation.  Your mind is a critical tool so keep it sharp by reading and thinking so you can acquire the knowledge you need to be better prepared.

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Over the last month or so, I’ve spend time reading various books, blogs, and other information sources regarding preparation.  One common theme in several of them is the importance of staying employed.

You would think this would be a relatively straightforward proposition, but times are tough and keeping a job can be a challenge.

However, not having a job can severely hamper your preparation efforts.  Not only does employment provide money to purchase the things you need, it also offers social contacts and learning opportunities.  All are important when turbulence hits.

I’ll have more to write on this subject later but one thought to keep in mind is that “job” doesn’t necessarily mean working for somebody else…

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When I mention the importance of having extra car keys, I speak from experience.

GM Key Fob

Last year I had a problem with my car’s clutch and had to pick it up late after work.  The shop was closed and my mechanic locked the set I gave him inside the car.  I was going to use the second key to open my car, start it up, drive it home, and use it to get to work the following morning.

That’s what I thought at least.

What I neglected to do was test both keys *before* I dropped my car off.  You see, I switched the keys and had the dealer reprogram one of the fobs when I was going through my divorce five years ago.  My goal was to ensure my ex would not suddenly decide to drive off with my car, which I was able to successfully prevent.  However, in doing so I messed-up my second set of keys.

Fast forward to a dark night in the late fall of 2012 with a fixed car but a non-working key.  Oops, had to go home and get the plastic emergency key to finally get into my car.  That weekend, I went to the GM dealer and had both key fobs reprogrammed and two brand-new keys cut so everything matched.  Oh, and I tested both sets at the dealership before I left.

The moral of the story is even an ostensibly prepared individual can make mistakes through oversights.  Learn from me, test your additional keys and fobs to ensure they work before you need them to.  Testing your preparations is a key component in making them so don’t forget this step.

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How fast does it take for societal collapse to take place?

Credit: Getty Images

If the recent history of Libya is any guide, the answer is very fast.

Think about it, less than three years ago Libya was relatively stable and a major oil exporter.  Its former leader had given up supporting terrorism and foreign investment was starting the flow back in.  Libya was in decent shape for an African country, all things considered.  However, the combination of an Arab Spring, simmering tribal disputes, and deep social divides produced a civil war that exploded with almost no warning.  The results are a collapsed society, destroyed infrastructure, and lingering violence that has no clear end in sight.

With this in mind, how prepared are you for a descent into chaos?

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You remember a while back I wrote about the importance of redundancy?  Well, here’s a story that will emphasize the importance of it in a harmless yet illustrative fashion.  It start with an automobile, kinda like this one:

Mazda MX-5

My girlfriend and I were going to take her car up to Flagstaff a few weekends ago to get out of the heat.  We figured it would be fun to go to the mountains, drop the top, and drive in the cool pines for a while.  It didn’t happen that way because of a little mistake that caused unnecessary stress and frustration.  Thankfully, the story has a happy ending…but let me describe what happened first.

Its a Saturday morning and we are getting ready to leave.  As we are preparing to load her car, both of us notice that the keys to the Mazda are nowhere to be found.  When she purchased the car, she only received one key from the dealer.  This wasn’t a problem…until now.  For the next three hours we searched in vain for the key, we even drove to a Mazda dealer to attempt to get a duplicate key.  Because of the programming of the key however, even if we were able to purchase one, it would have required programming to start the car.  We decided that since we couldn’t find the key it was best to take my car and salvage what we could out of the weekend.

My girlfriend and I were stressed, both of us were frustrated at the situation and each other.  The looming problem was getting her car working so she could get to work on Monday and the expense of getting her car operational again.  She was looking at several hundred dollars out of pocket to resolve the situation.  Having a second key would have prevented all of this, which is why locksmiths recommend you have at least two keys for each automobile.

Despite the rocky start to our weekend, we had a great time in Flagstaff.  Both of us needed time to relax and we took advantage of the cool weather to be outside and active.  As the weekend drew to a close though and we started heading back to Phoenix, the question of what to do about the missing keys came up.  We decided to do one last search together to see if we could find the one and only set of keys.

…and we found them.

Luckily, it took us only about five minutes of searching before we recovered the keys and breathed huge sighs of relief.  Later that week, she got a second set of keys so this wouldn’t happen again.  Both of us were glad things turned out alright in the end, but the moral to this story is to have two of everything you might need.  Redundancy comes in handy both during emergencies and in weekend getaways.

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In between traveling and work, I’ve made time to do some more reading.  Last month, I reviewed The Prepper’s Pocket Guide and encouraged everybody who didn’t already have a copy to buy it.  This month, I had a chance to read an even more in-depth book on the subject and will encourage everybody to pick up a copy as well.

The Prepper’s Instruction Manual covers a lot of material but focuses on fewer subjects.  The result is more detailed and in-depth information that can be used to become better prepared.  I really liked this book and thought it struck a good compromise between being thorough detailed on the subject matter yet broad enough to cover a wide range of preparation-related subjects.  The result is an advanced-beginner to intermediate-level book on the subject.

The author is a NASA Engineer and has thoroughly researched the subjects he covers in his book.  Like me (and you?) he is a normal person who lives in the real world, not one who lives “off the grid” on some remote retreat in the forest.  That said, he isn’t afraid to tackle some serious subjects (ex. burying dead bodies) in his book.  The writing makes it easy to read and the chapters are short and sweet.  This book is worth the time and money.

So if you have a few spare dollars, buy a copy and start reading.

Overall Rating:  8/10

Click here to buy the Prepper’s Instruction Manual