Are You Ready

~~It’s not possible to be prepared for every kind of disaster that may happen. However, not planning for anything is simply put: stupid.

Prepping isn’t just about getting ready for a Zombie apocalypse. In fact it has very little to do with Zombies. To say you’re prepping is to say you’re going to be more prepared for a surprise than the next guy. A surprise could be a week long winter storm that has crippled your part of the world. Perhaps a large flood, tornado or hurricane would be enough to turn your world upside down. Mother Nature has been just as brutal in taking out buildings, homes and businesses in cities as some bombing runs during a war.

How you store something could be just as critical as what you store. If all your supplies are sitting on a basement floor in fruit boxes you got from the local market, how well will they protect against flood waters or mice? This doesn’t mean you need steel ammo cans that are water tight, but a five gallon bucket with a good lid will be effective (and float) against rising water but not as much against hungry mice or other critters who seek refuge from extreme weather. 

Canned goods are the easiest to stock up on. It’s a product you can buy on sale, rotate before they expire and they stack well. However, have you thought about how you plan on cooking these foods. Having a supply of matches is good, but if you have nothing to burn, all it will provide is a little light for 10 seconds at a time. Being a good prepper is hand in hand with being a good planner. You have to think everything all the way through, from A to Z.

Having food is one thing, but cooking it requires a container to heat it up and a source of heat? And how were you planning on cleaning the container afterwards? Do you see where this is going? And to throw one more thing at you… how much can you take with you if you have to leave your home unexpectedly? Most preppers will advise having a three day supply in a “bug out bag” is a good idea. When you start putting together enough supplies for one person to last three days, it will take no time to realize that each person needs their own bag. The worst of it is water. An adullt human can easily consume a gallon of water a day under harsh working and heat situations. Each gallon weighs over eight pounds and that adds up fast.

When you stop to consider all that is needed to survive without any electricity, it doesn’t take long for you to come to the conclusion of how dependent on technology we are. If living today is in full HD color, adjust your thoughts to living in Black & White and you’ll have a much better chance of making it through a natural disaster and or an unlikely a Zombie attack.

Food

There are many choices to choose from when it comes to food. However, if you must have fresh vegetables in order to stay alive… you could be in trouble. In years past, a person had little choices of “survival” food. Sample size packages of freeze dried fruits were available in gift shops at space museums, but no bulk, 30 day supply kits were available like they are today.

Several national companies are now selling food containers to large box stores as well as in camping supply stores and even in some gun shops. They can be bought factory direct online. Some are sold in single serving packages while others can be bought in bulk cans. Foods that are in powder form have a much longer shelf life. In some cases, they claim to have a 25 year shelf life! If you have young ones, don’t forget the powdered milk. It may not have the same flavor your use to, but when there are no other choices it will be a nice treat. And you can make one serving at a time.

Soups, stews, fruits and other canned foods are good to stock up on. Canned goods have an expiration stamped on them and for the most part, the contents are still good past the date. How it’s been stored will have an effect on how long the contents are still edible. If they have been stored in a cool dry place, they have a better chance of still being good past the date. How long past? Some say 18 to 24 months depending on the individual food. Rice and beans are another good food to stock up on.

A 25 pound bag of rice can be stored in several plastic 2 liter bottles. Pack them with a silica gel pack to absorb moisture, then melt a candle and let it drip around the seal. This is one way to divide up the weight of food among several backpacks within your family or group. Hard candies such as Jolly Ranchers are also good to have on hand. They are high in sugar and in situations where the body needs a quick pick me up, such as in cold conditions they could be helpful. It would also be good to have a supply of vitamins on hand. If you had to pick only one, I’m told Vitamin D is the smartest choice.

If you have the room and if it’s worth it, you may consider some cooking spices. Some of these “survival” foods may be bland in flavor and a little help could go a long ways. Whether you keep it simple with some salt and pepper or step it up to some Mrs. Dash or something with a little more heat, you might be glad you did. A smart way to decide what you pack away would be by counting calories. Our society seems to think a 2000 calorie a day diet is average. If you’re hiding out in a basement in comfortable temperatures a person may be able to survive on less than that. But, if you’re splitting fire wood in 20 degree weather for several hours at a time, a person could easily need up to 3,000 calories or more to maintain body weight and strength.

Alternative Energy

If the sun is out during the days after the “event”, solar panels will be the easiest way to produce electricity. All you need are some panels, a 12 volt battery bank and a power inverter. The trick is having enough collective power to be able to charge your batteries in the shortest amount of time as possible, along with having an inverter big enough to power your electrical equipment.

Wind turbines are also available. They are more expensive than solar panels and most need at least 12-16 mph of wind before they start making power, but some are capable of producing up to 400 watts of power. Another downfall is installing them. They need to be 20-30 feet in the air for best results and they should also be stabilized with guide lines.

Portable battery packs are handy. They are a self-contained unit that has a battery and inverter all in one, with a carry handle. Duracell makes one that has three 110 outlets, a radio and small light. It can be recharged from a DC or AC source. They’re available in 400, 600 and 1800 watt capabilities. Keep in mind the more wattage, the bigger and heavier they will be. The 600 size is two or three times as big as a common toaster and weighs over 25 pounds.

Folding solar panels are somewhat new. They take up little storage space, are durable, but not cheap and have limited collective power compared to larger, hard panels.. They range from 12 to over 100 watts of collective power. The least amount of pieces for a good power kit would be a 600 watt portable power pack and a 30 watt folding solar panel.

Depending on what size of appliance you need to power up, a 400-600 watt inverter should be the smallest you buy. If you can afford it, get a 2000-2500 watt inverter. Something to remember when using a solar system with an inverter is… it takes electricity to run the inverter. So if you add up all the wattage you need to run your electronics and that total number is 1800 watts, it will take at least 150-300 watts to power your inverter (depending on its size).

The point is, it’s better to estimate high and get more than you need than it is to not have enough. This same theory goes with your battery farm. A deep cycle 12 volt battery works good, but two deep cycle 6 volt (golf cart) batteries put together will last longer than a single 12 volt. More batteries will give you power longer without any sunlight, but it will also take longer to recharge them. And if you don’t have much sunlight, it may take a while… especially if you only have a 12 watt solar panel.

Shelter

Depending on what type of an emergency you encounter, you may have little to no choice of where you bed down. If you’re driving home from work during a blizzard and get trapped in your car, trying to walk anywhere in cold blowing weather isn’t a good idea.

This is one reason having a supply bag and other emergency items in your vehicle during the winter is a good idea. A solar blanket and a candle can go a long ways in the back seat of a vehicle. Keeping a few bottles of water to stay hydrated is also good. Gloves and a stocking cap are also good to have. Stay where you are until the weather becomes stable. It could be 12 hours or two days. And if it looks like you’ll be spending the night in your vehicle, don’t go outside to go #1 or #2 if it’s freezing cold. Better to go in a bag and just toss it out the door quickly. Going out in the elements will lower your body temp and allow more cold air in the vehicle. Neither of which is good.

If you had to leave your home and forced to be out in the elements, your first choice would be to find shelter. A barn, garage or even a shed can make a big difference. Staying warm and dry is first priority. Food and water will be your second. If you aren’t able to find a building, starting looking for a tree line and make a lean-to shelter. A small camp fire will be the next thing on your list. Try not to sleep directly on the ground. Make a bed using sticks and limbs/branches.

Look for anything that could help you in your situation. Even using a culvert to lie inside if water isn’t going to be draining through it could help you live through the night. Older bridges have areas up under them that are big enough to lie in. This will keep you out of the elements but depending on the time of year, there may be bird nests or other critters there are as well.

The thing you have to understand is… don’t stay out in the open if conditions are extreme. That goes the same for heat as it does for cold. One rule that you could start living by is… wear the clothes that you’d like to have on when it hits the fan and you have to be responsible for yourself. In other words, don’t take a 500 mile road trip in shorts, a tank top and flip flops without having more clothes that will protect you from the elements. A backpack can be bought at a garage sale or second hand store cheaply. Filling it with a warm set of clothes with extra socks won’t take up too much room in your truck or back seat. Put a box of granola bars, bottled water with a knife, flashlight and you have a simple version of a bug out bag.

At Home

Let’s say you and your family are home safe and sound when a snow storm dumps several feet of snow in your area. You wake up in the middle of the night with no electricity. What do you do? First, check to see if anything else is working, gas or water. If you have running water, fill your bath tub and as many large pots as you can. You can use water from the pots for drinking and what’s in the tub can be used for laundry and cooking/cleaning. Don’t wait till morning. If water is still flowing, fill up what you can before power goes out or lines freeze.

If there is five feet of snow on your roof, you may want to start with removing that. Try not to have that weight of so much snow causes any more problems. And don’t shovel it to the driveway; it will be that much harder to get the car out. If you have no heat what so ever, it would be a good idea to make a room within a room. Hanging quilts or blankets to form a square “room” will allow you to sit around a few candles and stay warm. Make it big enough for all your family members and pets if necessary. You would be surprised how warm a few candles in a small enclosed area can feel.

You can also use candles to cook foods and of course produce some heat at the same time. If temps are subzero, you should only go out for short periods at a time and no more than you absolute have to. If things look like they will be back to normal in a few days, treat this time like a family holiday that is forced to be inside. The idea is to keep the spirits positive by playing games with your family instead of acting like this was a Russian attack and the world is ending.

Putting up blankets over windows can also help keep the cold out and heat inside. Even putting up large pieces of cardboard would act as another layer of insulation. If outside temps are so severe, every little bit can help. Clean snow can be melted and drank. If you’re at home and it’s summer time, and for whatever reason nothing is working… remember your hot water tank has at least 40 gallons of drinkable water in it. That can last a long time, but depending on how long you’re going to be without power, use it sparingly.

If you have a creek, river, pond or lake nearby you could sterilize that water and use it as well. Boiling water is the most popular, but there are other ways to filter it. A Life Straw is the easiest, but homemade filters can also be made. Depending on what event took place, you’ll want to be aware of your neighbors. They could become vital to stay alive or in some cases they may be your biggest threat. If they know you have supplies, they may try and come get yours. You will have to defend what is yours. Be smart about what you tell people… what kind of supplies and weapons you have.  

Communications

Again, depending on the event… this may not be too much to worry about. If you’re living through a huge snowstorm all you may need to have is a source of news and weather. A battery powered radio that gets appropriate reception is all you may need. Keep in mind that some AM stations may have weather and news updates more often than FM stations.

If the event is different, an invasion, EMP or anything else that is severe… being able to communicate with others near and far will be very helpful. However, remember this… unless your communications are 100% secure, understand that other people could be listening to everything you say.

Ham radio operators will have an advantage to reach people who are several hundred miles away and more. But, these radios are more difficult to learn to use and are often much bigger in size. Newer versions that are smaller and easier to operate are available, but may not be working due to an EMP. A CB radio may be an easier way to keep in touch with people in your area and they are much easier to obtain and use.

AM radio signals bounce off the Earth’s surface and atmosphere, whereas FM signals travels in straight lines or “line of sight”. There is a type of CB radio that offers Upper and Lower sideband channels. These CB radios are harder to find, but when using an upper or lower band channel, they operate on 12 watts of output instead of the standard four watts. This is the difference of reaching distances from 10-12 miles with a standard CB or 35 miles or more with an Upper or Lower band CB.   Keep in mind, the better (taller) your antenna, the further your signal will reach. Most big truck stops or radio shack stores will be your best chance for a good CB and antenna purchase. A Wilson 5000 is the best you’ll get for under $100.

Whether you use a walkie–talkie, CB, Ham radio or a cup on a string… remember that other people can and will be listening. Learn to talk in code, so that only you and the person you are having a conversation with is understanding what’s being said. It’s also worth mentioning that radio signals can be traced. If that technology is still available and working, you should limit the amount of time you transmit and obviously don’t transmit from your camp if you think others are listening.   

One thing to consider is having an antenna that is mobile or at least can be taken down when not in use. If nothing else, trying to keep it hidden is better than having it up in the middle of an open area. Of course this comes at a cost, depending on how you hide it, that material may keep the antenna from working as well as it can. It may be hard to stay hidden with a big antenna on top of your house and other “signs” that say people are there.

Water

It goes without saying, you need clean water to drink to your survive. Having water stored is good and keeping it rotated is smart. Most bottled water has a shelf life of about 18 months. After that you take some risk of drinking it although it could be boiled and then drank.

During extreme work or hot conditions (or both) a human can easily drink 1 gallon of water a day. If you start to drink less than what your body needs, dehydration will start and from there things will only get worse and fast. Some claim women should consume at least 91oz. of water per day and men 125oz per day.

There are many company’s making “straw” filters that take away 99% and more of the bacteria that can be harmful or fatal. Some of these filter 30, 50 and up to 160 gallons. A few have replaceable filters so you can continue using them. These straw filters make it possible to drink straight from a creek, river, lake or pond. However, keep in mind that moving/running water is far cleaner than pond water that animals have been in. Activated charcoal is the main ingredient in these filters. A design for a home-made filter was shared online, showing a two liter bottle and layers of rocks and sand with activated charcoal at the bottom. The top (or first) layer is big rocks (1.5 inch). Next are smaller rocks. Third layer is course sand, then a layer of fine sand. Next the charcoal, and last is a layer of cotton balls. If you placed a coffee filter between each layer, it should make this system even better, lasting longer and giving the most pure water possible.

Boiling water to purify it is also popular if you have the means to do so. It should first be filtered with a coffee filter or clean sock first. And make sure it is at a full boil 3-5 minutes, and then allow time to cool before drinking. Adding clear (unscented) bleach to water can also help to purify it. Ratios are as follows. To clean one quart of water, add 4 drops of bleach. For two liters of water, use 10 drops of bleach. One gallon of water, 16 drops of bleach. To make up two gallons of water, 32 drops of bleach. This process is probably ok to do with water that has been sitting in a hot water heater, but not a creek, river or lake water. A more thorough filtering process would be needed for water that has been stagnant, starting with filtering it with a coffee filter or clean white sock. 

The most natural way to determine if you’re not drinking enough water will be by the color of your urine. A dark yellow color indicates that you need more water, the less yellow it is, the better. And don’t think that you can’t become dehydrated in cold temperatures. More than half of the human body is made up of water. For babies it’s closer to 70%. You need to replenish this no matter the temperature or physical activity.
 
EMP

Now, if the situation is different and the lights went out due to an EMP, board games won’t be in the game plan. If there is any way to determine whether the pulse was from the sun or an enemy warhead, it will help you decide which way to plan the rest of your life as you know it. A pulse from the sun will mean that it’s more than likely just a regional outage that may have affected an area of 100 to 500 miles.

For those who have never heard the term EMP, it’s Electro Magnetic Pulse. It takes place during a nuclear (atomic) explosion. It has a very negative effect on electronic devices and the internal wiring. Everything from a watch to a car is not expected to survive an EMP. In fact, it’s believed that if you have a pace maker installed, you’ll drop dead if in range of an EMP.

It’s not sure what can be done to protect electronic equipment from an EMP. Many say if you wrap a device in tin foil and then in a towel, place that inside a steel garbage can… you’ve made a faraday cage. You can do the same, wrapping something up in foil and a towel and put it in a microwave oven to protect it from an EMP. The closer you are to the center of the blast, the more intense the pulse will be, leaving less chance for items to survive the pulse. 

If the pulse came from an attack, it means the situation is just going to get worse. An invasion of some sort is likely and everyone in your area will need to form a plan in order to work together and defend everything you have. You won’t know who the enemy is until they are on top of you. They will have every advantage; because all of their equipment will be working and very little if any of your equipment will be functioning. Not only will they have electricity, but think of the technology they may be using to come after you. One example, drones with night vision that can see heat signatures from 10,000 feet up. You could be in more danger walking around at night than in the daylight.  Surviving could come to mean being able to live in a stealth mode. We may have to become masters of camouflage in order to stay alive.  

If you are living on a farm with no neighbors in site, you might be able to run a generator for a while and it not draw attention to yourself. But imagine living in a neighborhood of people who are hungry and suddenly they hear a generator. Unless they are all your friends, you’ll become the sitting duck of the community. The same goes for solar panels and wind generators. If they can be seen from a distance, it says there are people nearby and they have electricity. You’ll need to be very careful about what is visible to others after whatever event happens. Until there is some sort of stability in your area, you are better off trying to remain stealth in your day to day living.

Volcanic Eruption/Earthquake 

We have a super volcano in Wyoming, called Yellowstone. In recent years the belly of the beast has been found out to be much larger than originally known. Its lava chamber spreads into neighboring Idaho. And if/when it blows it will throw so much dirt, soot and glass particles into the air that it could cover a 1,000 mile area with up to three feet of ash. It’s very likely after a big eruption like that the air will be filled with millions of particles of tiny pieces of glass. If you’re not breathing through some sort of air-tight mask, those particles will slowly cut up the inside of your throat and kill you from the inside.

One more thing to consider is contamination through clothing. If you’ve been outside for several hours and come into a home, the glass particles are now inside your home. The safest thing to do would be to make a “changing” room connected to the outside door, but separate from the rest of the house. Have a set of clothes that is worn only outside. No “clean” clothes should be inside the changing room, or they risk contamination. If you’re living to the east/south of the Yellowstone area and the wind is going to carry the debris to your area, there is a good chance that most animal life will die within weeks and nothing can be farmed for decades to come. Nobody knows what will become of the land within the first 100-300 mile radius. It will obviously look like a bomb went off.

Earthquakes are also very easily possible. There is a fault line in the central U.S. called the New Madrid Fault. Over 200 years ago, it shook 3-4 times over a three month period and caused the Mississippi River to flow backwards for one day. One study shows this fault line to have enough force that if it blew it could almost split the country in two. It had a map of what they thought was possible. It showed the current Mississippi River to expand in size, at the base/mouth being several hundred miles wide and being around 10 miles wide at St Louis. It would become a Bay of St Louis. This would put all of Louisiana, Arkansas, Missouri, under water and most of Mississippi and parts of Texas, Oklahoma, Kentucky, Tennessee and Kansas, flooded. 

If either of these scenarios takes place, it will more than likely reduce the affected areas population by more than half in less than a year and in some areas as quickly as 90 days. I say this because the national power grid will more than likely not be working. This means no lights at night, no microwave popcorn, no communications as we have been use to and no gas stations that can pump gas. How long can you last with no electricity? If the ground we walk on were to literally change in shape and or direction, think of all the underground pipes, whether they be water, sewer, gas or oil. All of that will leak out and could make its way to the surface. It will be the biggest mess you can imagine. And bridges and roadways will also be affected, making it very difficult to travel from one area to another.

Military Attack

Our country has many enemies. And it’s not just the big ones that present a big problem. We owe China more money than we’ll ever be able to pay back and each year the amount grows. Russia still hasn’t gotten over losing the cold war and is rumored to have been working on a plan using Ideological Subversion or active measure since the 1950′s to attack and take down the U.S.  Both countries have been building up their military in the last several years, but we’ve been reducing the size of ours… because of Obama.

Terrorists and even Mexican cartel have made claims that they want to attack within the U.S. borders. It’s been known that before 2007 members of Al Qaeda have snuck into the southern states using the same techniques that many illegal aliens use. They are well funded, trained and are able to blend in easily within our culture. It was reported in September of 2014 that there are one million people who are in the U.S. who got here through student visa’s or work permits, who should have gone back to where they came from but didn’t. And our Govt. doesn’t know where they are. If only 10 percent of those were terrorists that is an invasion force of 100,000 just waiting on orders to attack.

Now, think about how you’ve shared your life with people locally and online. All that information can be used by bad guys who have just been adding it all up taking notes on everything we say. The lights go out at 1 am from an EMP. Our enemies have had years to prepare and all night to put them into position. They’ve positioned their bombs in the places where some of us go to work shop or even live. We’ll wake up thinking it’s just a power outage and go on with our lives, playing right into their plan. The question is, how many of us will make it home that night and what will our homes be like by 5pm?

A nuclear attack is possible. Russia has built up their submarine force and as recently as October of 2014 had their long range bombers make patrols on our southern and east coast states. A question to remember is, “do they want to use our resources and land after the attack”? If so, it seems they would choose not to use nuclear weapons. But if they felt nothing we have is worth anything to them, it’s very possible that they could nuke the entire country, leaving very little if anything behind. There are some who believe this to be a real possibility and have built underground bunkers to live in. That’s a good plan to survive the attacks, but unless you have supplies to stay underground for a decade or more, it will only prolong a slow death of dying from radiation poisoning.

There may not be much a person can do, depending on what type of an attack may happen. We may not even be able to fight back if it’s a missile attack from subs or other stealth vehicles. But one question to consider… would you rather die defending what is yours or become a slave or prisoner to a group who have no respect for your way of life?

Weapons

 No matter what happens, it’s very likely that you will need some sort of self defense strategy that will include having weapons. I’m not suggesting you buy as many guns and boxes of ammo as you can afford, but it is a good idea to defend what you have and those who you love.

The most popular choices of weapons are a pistol, shotgun or rifle. All of which are good to have, but each are very different from the other. A pistol is easy to carry and conceal but is limited to effective range of 30-50 yards. There are many calibers to choose from, .380, .38, 9mm, 10mm, .357, .40 and .45 ACP being the most popular. A smaller caliber will have less kick when fired, but also less stopping power towards an attacker. Revolvers and automatics are the two choices of auctions. An automatic will have the ability to carry more ammo. The longer the barrel, the more accurate it will be at a further distance, and the less recoil, but it will also be heavier.

A shotgun has several choices as well. Some are pump actions, others are auto loading and the older styles are single shot with one or two barrels. The most popular calibers (called gauges) are 20, 12 and .410. A shotgun shoots a “shell”, where pistols/rifles shoot bullets. You have many choices of shells within each gauge. A 7 or 8 shot is full of small pellets, whereas a 2 or 4 shot are loaded with larger BBs. A 00 or 000 shell has large round balls that don’t spread out much but have a lot of stopping power. A slug is a solid piece of lead that has the most amount of stopping power within a 75 to 100 yard range. Similar to a pistol, a shotgun is generally used for close targets ranging from 30 to 50 yards. The most popular feature of a shot gun is you don’t have to be as accurate with aiming because the pellets or shot spread out as they get further from the gun… making it easier to hit your target. The worst thing about a shotgun is the force of the kick. A 12 gauge has a big kick, .410 not near as much.

A rifle also comes in several designs. Single shot bolt actions or lever actions are thought to be the most accurate. But a lot of barrel making technology has brought auto loaders a long way over the last 10-15 years. Rifles are available in many calibers, offering the most choices. Because of the longer barrels, a rifle (like a shotgun) is the heaviest and worse to carry around. However, some calibers of bullets are capable of hitting a target at 500 yards and up to a mile and more. Popular calibers range from .17, .22LR, .223, .243, 270, 7mm, 30-06, 308, 300 Win Mag., .338 and 50 BMG. Some of the auto loader rifles are capable of holding up to 30 rounds of ammo. The same goes with rifles, the bigger the bullet the more kick and louder they are. For about 30 years the .308 was the preferred rifle round for U.S. military snipers, capable of taking down a target at 1000 yards. In the last decade a lot of research and applications have gone into the 6.5mm (260 family) making it the most accurate at distances up to 1200-1400 yards. But good luck finding 6.5 ammo in bulk.

Having a few of each weapon would be a good thing, but depending on what happens there are some who believe having a supply of Bow & Arrows, sling shots, blow guns and swords are also very good. None of them make any noise and don’t require any paper work that involves the Govt. when you buy them. Of course they are all limited by range and the amount of time between each shot. But now you can decide what it best for you.

Mindset

If the event is caused by Mother Nature it depends on where you’re living and how much effect it had on you as to how easy it will be to survive. However, regardless of the situation, having a strong will to stay alive is what you’re going to need to make it.

The more mentally you’re prepared for what you may see, the better off you’ll be. Panic and fear will be two things that will be running rampant on their own. It’s like those who panic and drown. You can’t swim with your arms up, waving in the air. But that same motion under the water’s surface will help you stay afloat.

Regardless of what happens, the best thing to do is stay calm. Take notes of what has happened and all that is around you. You can’t decide what the best course to take until you have as many details about what has happened. If you have a lot of supplies packed away, you don’t want go on the run and leave it all behind if you don’t have to. But if you do need to leave soon, having a little information as to what will be the most valuable supplies could make a big difference in the days to come.

If you end up staying in your home area, keep your group busy with small tasks so that they are able to keep their mind off all the traumatic events that have recently taken place. Giving them little things to do will also help them feel like they are accomplishing something and get them into the right mindset. It’s better to have daily goals in the beginning, rather than trying to plan a year out in the first week after the event.

After taking a good look at the situation, start referring to all the notes you took in preparation for what happened. If the event that took place wasn’t on your list of “what ifs”, that’s okay. Keep cool and consider the supplies you have and how they will work with what happened. If you were smart and tried to plan for as many scenarios as possible, you’re bound to have some items or equipment that will help you and your team survive. If not, think about what you need and where to go to get it.

Think outside the box. An example, cotton balls are available at a pharmacy, Doctors or Vet office, grocery store and possibly a convenient store. No matter the situation, you’re better off with a diverse group of people, rather than just yourself. However, if your group of ten has eight career plumbers your odds of making it wouldn’t be as good as a group who had eight different career fields represented.

And last but not least, you should pray to God for guidance. If you’re still alive after the event, there may be a reason for it. There isn’t a scenario on earth that will be as bad as an eternal life in hell. Accept Jesus as your Savior, follow His will and you will have the best chance of surviving what’s to come.