Survival preparation is simply preparing to live in a completely different world then what we know of today.  It's kinda like dress rehearsal - but for an unknown event. You practice, or in our case; gather information, supplies, skills and knowledge for an event that we don't know where, when or how it is going to happen - just that its gonna happen, one day.

Like with many things we've prepared for (or practiced for), at times an 'event' does not actually play out the way we rehearsed it in our minds or physically.

For instances, have you ever done something and afterwards said to yourself, "man, that was harder than it looked."? Or “Geeze that didn’t would out like I planned it.”

In my opinion, I think this is exactly what is going to happen with us should a disaster strike.

Why?  Because an 'event' means so many things to so many people.

EMPs, Nuclear Attacks, Economic Collapse, Terrorist Attacks, Floods, Ice Storms, Hurricanes, Earthquakes, Mudslides ... (the list goes on and on)

There are nearly as many 'event' scenarios as there are ... well you get where I'm going.

Many of us have a particular 'event' conjured up in our mind and have prepared with food storage, self-defense skills, and other survival skills for that event.

Take a hurricane or other natural disaster where electricity is out and there is no running water - but your home is safe. 

You drag out the supplies that you have accumulated throughout the years and sit pretty until the electric and water are restored - literally camping indoors.

Now think about an earthquake where your home AND all the supplies that you have painstakingly accumulated are destroyed and you are left with nothing but the clothes on your back.

With both scenarios you HAD supplies - you WERE prepared.

As you can see, in an instant all your supplies and preparations are gone.

What you are left with to survive is nothing more than your knowledge and survival skills.
So my suggestion to you is this, begin rehearsing in your mind how you would survive with nothing.  As you read or see things – see yourself doing these things in your mind. 

Put what you learn to memory and play then out over and over – as an actor puts his lines and movements to memory. 

Now, places everyone!!

- Survivor Jane

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So I’m thinking (scary I know), we have no idea what is really going to happen in a poo-hits-the-fan scenario right?  Think about it.  We may have just enough time to grab our ‘go’ bag from our home or car and start hoofing it.  And that’s where my thought is … the hoofing it part.

So many of us from our twenties on are feeling the effects of all the “happy-burgers’ we’ve eaten, the sedentary lifestyle of video gaming and work, and just plain ol “I’m too tired” to do anything.

 If we spend two-thirds of our lifetime at work and the other one-third eating, sleeping, pooping (sorry but we do that) and playing video games or watching TV we’re just not getting any exercise now are we?

If you have ever experienced a disaster, or at least seen one on TV you know that there is a lot of crashed, broken, mangled, and collapsed stuff on the ground everywhere.  Lots of it.  This means, we may have to walk, climb, and crawl over some of that stuff to get to a safe place.

Well how the heck do you even condition yourself to do this?   Less going to the playground and crawling around on the jungle-gym;  which I must say you might want to reconsider, with all the wackos out there, mom’s get a little nervous when grown-up are intermingling with their children.  Just sayin.

Then it came to me.  Stairs. You know those wooden or cement risers and treads that go up into the unknowns?  The things next to the elevators and escalators?  No?  Okay this is gonna take more work than I thought.

 The benefits of stairs are many.  Think about everything you use to climb stairs, less your legs, heart and lung which you’ll feel immediately.   You’ll also use your arms to cling to the hand rail to drag yourself up, you’ll use your butt (caboose, behinny, bottom, gluts - call it what you will it’s still gonna hurt) to propel your legs to the next step and you’ll use your stomach muscles to hold back that sick feeling once you get to the top of the stairs.   But trust me it’ll be all worth it.

We NEED to exercise.  Taking stairs requires no special skill (well you need to find them first), and just like walking all you do is just put one foot in front of the other – oh but remember to lift the foot first (okay so there is some special skill my bad).  Just focus on taking one step at a time and gradually work your way up to more steps or flights - like you’d even get up the first flight the first time around right?

A lot of people are under the impression that if they run they can climb stairs.  Wrong.  If you’re a runner listen up.

You’ve got a little thing called gravity working against you when climbing stairs.  It’s like having a ball and chain wrapped around your waist or carrying yourself up the steps.   So why would you want to do this?  Because you want to live?

‘Can’t I just use one of those stair thingies at the gym?’ you ask.   Sure.  But you’re not going to get the same workout.  Those stair thingies only work your legs.   It’s a given, you’ll have awesome looking legs but you’ll still be out of breath – just like runners.  And another difference and benefit with stairs is that stairs are steeper than most hills that runners run. 

In a disaster situation we are going to have to carry and maneuver around things at the same time. This may require, bending or crouching down to conceal yourselves and then getting up to move again.  It is imperative that we be able to do this with as little effort as possible.  By learning to carry our weight so to speak using stairs it will enable us to be in far better shape to walk and carrying things, like say that ‘go’ bag (which weighs about 20-30 lbs)?

Forget all those high priced workout machines and equipment.  Use the stairs.

Oh and when you get really good at it, try running up them.

Just sayin.

- Survivor Jane

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Related Articles:

SURVIVOR JANE GO-BAG CHALLENGE!!™
Survivor Jane Go-Bag Challenge!!™ - Beginning the Challenge
Please Pass the Remote – (Lack of Physical Activity as a Result of Technology)
The other Gem in your life (Exercising for Survival Sake)
Throwing a Fit over Fitness - (The Things We Must do to Survive)
Everybody was Kung Fu Fighting (Survival Physical Preparedness)

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As I walked to my car from my top-floor high-rise office into the semi-lit multi-level parking garage, EDC and keys in hand; eyes darting in all directions for the unknown, I note as I approach my vehicle that someone has placed an “advertisement” card in my car door window.  A little perturbed that someone would even be around my car I abruptly snatch the card out of the window and unlock my car. parking garage

Suddenly a “weird” sense-thing came over me. You know that hair standing up on the back of your neck - thing?

I quickly got into my car threw the card on the passenger seat and locked the doors.  Once inside, I scanned the floor boards and looked in the back seat.  All clear.  But I couldn't shake that "feeling".

I started my car and eased out into garage traffic, circling round and round; exiting each level of the garage until I came to the automatic card swipe machine on the lower level. 

"Ah, home free." But that darn “feeling” remained.

I swiped my card through the machine and pull forward. Just as I am about to exit the garage and enter the highway, my eye catches two people off to my right running full speed down the sidewalk towards my car.

My first thought was these people were running to catch a bus or were late for a meeting. I had two options. I could pull out across the sidewalk to wait for an opening in traffic possibly causing them to miss the bus or cause them to be even later to their meeting, or I could wait and let them cross in front of me before exiting out. 

As is my natural, I chose the latter.

car jackingWhat happened next is kinda a blur.  The two people I had thought I was “helping”, I later learned had just pistol whipped and robbed someone at gun-point at an ATM Machine and were now attempting to car-jack my car for a get away. As they yanked hard on my car door handles, one at the front passenger door; the other at the back door, all I could focus on was the black guns in their hands and a brightly colored yellow bag.

The only thing I could think to do was blare down on my car horn and not let up.

It was five o’clock rush hour. The roads were already heavy with traffic and people were crowding the sidewalks from all directions to get to their destinations - pulling out was not an option.

I couldn't comprehend why no one was coming to help?  It would only be a matter of time before my car windows were smashed by the gunman and they would be in the car.

Thankfully, I hear in the distance the familiar downtown sound of sirens. In seconds I am surrounded by law enforcement - guns drawn. But not before the two hearing the same sound, ran to the back of my car and were once again on foot.

So, why the weird feeling?  Well, my guess is because I usually reserved locking my car doors until after I exist the garage and am out on the road.

Why would I do that?

Invariably, my car would be too far from the card swiping machine and I wouldn't be able to reach the machine to swipe my card through my window, so I would have to open my car door to reach it. My door doesn't open unless it is unlocked.  On that day my “gut” told me to lock my doors when I got in the car. And I did. card swiping machine

What I was experiencing has been called a gut-feeling, an intuition. My body was telling me something was not right.  Gut-feelings are described as sudden, strong judgments that are triggered by a perception of something outside.

Intuition is the ability to acquire knowledge without inference or the use of reason.

Or, simply put, a gut-feeling is a response to your subconscious mind after receiving signals from external factors, that your conscious mind hasn't pick up on yet. I found a card in my car window which triggered my subconscious to respond with a “gut-feeling” although I could not physically see any eminent danger.

Now, don’t confuse fear with your gut-feeling.  You can have both.  And you need to learn to use both of them.

Had I not used my “gut-feeling”, and instead continue with my daily routine of not locking my car doors until out on the highway, who knows what would have happened with those two desperate people? 

In a survival/disaster situation and especially when the poo-hits-the-fan, it will be imperative that you follow your gut-feeling because just as I have shared here, you will be encountering desperate people too.  Just sayin'.

- Survivor Jane

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Ya know, even some of the more uh … seasoned preppers can't seem to give a straight answer as to what the heck the term EDC means. With all the acronyms out there to learn, like BOB, BOV and GOOD there's yet another to know - EDC. (Oh and for those newbie preppers, BOB stands for Bug Out Bag, BOV – Bug Out Vehicle and GOOD – Get Out Of Dodge.)  EDC stands for "Every Day Carry", and essentially, EDC is anything that you carry e-v-e-r-y d-a-y on your person. Everything that you need with you in a day. 

For guys it could be a comb, wallet, pocket knife, laptop, and PDA/cell phone.  For a mommy, it may be anything and everything pertaining to her baby’s needs while away from home. A business person could have a laptop, extra batteries, important documents, their cell phone, maybe an energy bar or two, water, you know all items business.  And for the ladies – wow now that's a toughy.  I mean, just think of the game show "Let's Make a Deal", right?!  We carry so much stuff in our bags and that’s whether we need it or not.  "Anyone have a can opener?"  See where I'm going?


So what does EDC or EDC bags and survival prep have to do with one another?  And why add yet another thing to the already mounding list of survival needs?  Well the short answer is this.  An EDC bag is a "survival bag" of sorts.  It’s a bag that you have on your person at all times and incorporates both your daily needed items with some critical survival items as well.

So for example, mommies may have a diaper bag that serves as her EDC bag and include such things as a a wallet, cell phone, multi-tool, band aids and antiseptic cream, cash, granola/energy bars, a bottle of water,  a pencil/note pad, a whistle, small manicure kit and a lighter.  Not necessarily things you would expect in a diaper bag but say mommy broke down on the side of the road and had to remove, or pry something open.  Or say she needed to loosen a screw or bolt that could at least enable her to limp her car to a safe destination instead of just sitting stranded in no-where land.

For the ladies - I've often wondered what the heck we carry in those huge suit cases of a hand bag.  What do I carry with me?  Well, a multi-tool and small adjustable wrench, a small LED flashlight, a small MedKit, N95 masks, a small SW/AM/FM radio, cash, a small makeup bag, hair ties and a scarf, fold up brush, small manicure set, granola/energy bars, a pencil/note pad, an aluminum tactical pen (which works great for protection – just sayin), a whistle with a compass, my cell phone and spare battery, a disposable lighter, keys to my house and vehicle, money, dental floss, needles and thread, ear plugs, eye drops, sunglasses, a paracord bracelet, a magnesium fire starter and, pepper spray.  And that’s just in the first section (just kidding).

I know what you're thinking.  That bag has to be huge!!  But the truth is, all of that stuff is in a fanny pack - plus more.  Yep, the items I listed are not huge or full scale.  We’re talkin' compact here. Having access to tools, first-aid, protection for eyes, nose, mouth and head, and emergency nourishment with us at all times are the essentials.

I can’t stress this enough.  We NEVER know when a disaster of any kind can strike.  By having a few critical items with us at all time can make the difference between survival and … well not surviving (the ugly word here is death.)

Once you realize how little room all these items actually take up and the huge benefits for having such items with you, I would hope you would sit down (well you really don’t have to sit down, you can stand up, hop on one foot, whatever) just make a list of your own items and start the process of acquiring them.   Also, there are some really great bags out there for everyone and anyone, add one to your list as well.

But why have all this stuff with you when you already have an emergency bag sitting in your vehicle? Simply put - you may not be able to get to your car in an emergency. Or - it could happen - your vehicle is destroyed or damaged and along with it all your emergency supplies.

So there you have it Survival Terminology 101. The word for the day is EDC and what does it stand for?  Class?  Class?  Anyone? Just sayin'.

- Survivor Jane

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Okay I must admit when I heard the phrase 'guns are like women's shoes - different ones are required for every occasion' it got my attention.

I mean what other accessory (less diamonds of course) do we all covet more than our glorious shoes??? Right?

So, the phrase got me to thinking. What does this actually mean?  Was the author saying we needed to have a gun that goes with each outfit?  Like we do our shoes?  Surely not. I mean the closest thing to a gun matching an outfit I've seen was at a gun show where some of the vendors were hawking pink colored guns (touted as guns for ladies-yeah right cha-ching!).  And, although I do like the color pink - a lot in fact, I promise you, I am not going to wear it everyday just so I can match my gun!!

But then I got to thinking about all the different types of guns out there that I've seen and figured this was probably where he was going.

Think about it.  We don't see police officers with a rifle strapped to their hips.  Nor do we see riot police with pistols. 

Each and very type of gun serves a specific need.  For example, it wouldn't be practical for us to own a rifle as our only means of protection and try to carry it with us (with our concealed weapons permit of course) in the car.  For heavens sake, we'd end up shooting a hole through the headliner trying to maneuver the darn thing should we find ourselves threatened.  Likewise, a BB gun will do us no good in a home burglary situation.

Every gun has a purpose as does every shoe.  In a survival situation we need to be prepared and armed. 

In as disaster situation, in the beginning, the bad guys are going to be armed with hand guns.  Why because they are most accessible and easy to hide.  How do you think they are gonna feel when they burst into your home looking to loot it and come face to face with the barrel of your high powered rifle? (And you are not afraid to use it.)

Just as in fashion ladies - we need to be a few steps ahead of our competition!  Do your homework.  Find out what is out there in the way of guns and which would be appropriate for you and your family’s every survival needs.

Just like walking in 4" heels - guns take some training to get use to.

- Survivor Jane

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