Survival Archives - Page 17 of 21

Bugging In Place with the Elderly

July 31, 2014July 31, 2014 James Burnette 1 Comment

Today I have a guest post from Lukas Nicholson. Lukas contacted me about writing a guest post on a subject I hadn’t really thought about. Buggin in with the elderly. I know many of you have parents and grandparents at home with you. Enjoy -James

When SHTF, most of us won’t have a secondary bug out location we can run to and wait out the chaos. In fact, the vast majority of preppers plan to essentially bug in place. That is probably a wise decision. Unless you have a fully stocked location nestled away somewhere out of town that can provide adequate shelter, food, water and security for an extended period of time, you best not plan on “heading for the hills” at the first sign of trouble.

Bugging out becomes even less of an option if you have elderly family or friends to account for. But I would guess that when most people are making plans they are not realistically considering the needs of their elder members. Before continuing, it should be made clear that not all older individuals will need special attention. Many are physically and mentally fit and perfectly capable of taking care of themselves.

But the truth is that many more elderly individuals are quite dependent on modern society for their needs. They may have extreme limitations brought on by maladies like diabetes or debilitating arthritis. They may depend on daily prescription medications to keep them relatively healthy. In our modern society they may get about and function with relative ease, but that shouldn’t bear on our assessment of how they will do when the lights go out permanently and we’re living like we did 150 years ago.

Realistically, there is only so much you can do to ensure the health and safety of the elderly during an extended period of catastrophe. But here are some things to think about and prepare for as best you can.

Bug In at the Older Member’s Home

It may make sense to make your bug out location at the elderly person’s home. If they are supportive of the idea, consider stocking your supplies at their location so when SHTF occurs, they don’t have to travel to meet you. Instead, it would be easier (but still dangerous) for you to bug out to their location.

This is advantageous for several reasons. They will have the comfort of staying in familiar surroundings and have all of their medical needs, such as walkers and other appliances, already in place. Staying in familiar surroundings will help them cope with the fear and may subsequently lessen the resulting depression as they experience the outside world crumble apart. In addition, many elderly are either particular about the food they eat or have health restrictions on the types of food they must have. For these reasons it might be far easier and sensible to plan on weathering the storm at the elderly person’s home.

Secure Your Home

Regardless of where you plan to stay, you must ensure the security of everyone in your party. So instead of focusing energy and resources on a vague plan for bugging out, it would be better to focus your efforts on securing your home for SHTF. Human psychology being what it is, people will still be creatures of opportunity, even under harsh circumstances. If your home is hardened against break-ins, looters and those searching for resources will tend to opt for your less secure neighbor’s home. This is not to say that in time they won’t get around to your home, but by then you will have had adequate time to assess your situation and devise concrete plans for your extended survival.

Lukas Nicholson hails from a family of preppers hardened by numerous Florida hurricanes. He found an outlet for his skills in the security industry, where he has spent the past seven years. He is now interested in sharing his knowledge online, where he writes in association with Topconsumerreviews.com.

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Archery Series: Getting Practice

July 28, 2014July 28, 2014 James Burnette 1 Comment

Hopefully you have enjoyed and learned something new from my previous two articles, so we can move on and get you out in the field on the next step…… The first thing you need to do after you purchase whatever equipment you have determined would best suit you, is practice!

When you start, if you haven’t ever shot a bow, you probably should begin at an archery range, with someone that has a significant amount of experience. Beginning at a 5 yard distance is ideal, you should be comfortable with short yardage before you move to longer yardage. After you get comfortable with shooting your bow, start moving and shooting from different angles, side to side and up and down. You need to practice shooting from all angles because you never completely know where your game is going to come from.

There are a multitude of possibilities, whether it be uphill or down hill and you need to be confident when you let your arrow go. Try if you can to practice with a friend and create distractions for each other (my wife and I do this and have a pretty good time). When you get your concentration down, work on your strength. Start at a closer range and start holding your bow drawn back for 30 seconds before you shoot and work your way to holding your draw at farther distances, then try it again holding for 45 seconds and so on. The longer you can hold your bow back before you shoot, the better.

I have been in a situation where I had to hold my bow back for over a minute before I let my arrow fly and to be honest I was shaking so bad, lost some control and I missed because nobody ever told me that I might have to do this. I was very disappointed in myself that day, so I stepped my practice and strength training up, now I can hold for 90 seconds without waver. I cannot stress the importance of practice enough, it will be the difference between a quick and painless kill shot and a painful wounding that you will have to track down.

When you practice in your backyard or in an archery range, you need to have the mindset that you are hunting and it is the real deal. If you have your quiver on your bow, make sure it’s full of arrows when you practice, because that slight amount of weight will make you shoot different if you don’t practice with it. If you are going to use a back quiver hunting, practice with it on your back full of arrows. If you might have to shoot with a pack on your back, practice with a pack on your back.

Practice shooting from a sitting position, from a kneeling position, as well as leaning over. Practice shooting your bow every way you possibly can, so you are confident to make the shot you are given every time.

If you are wanting to set something up in your backyard or elsewhere, you will soon find out that targets are expensive, so I will share a couple ways to make your own target that can save you some money.

Take any empty garbage can, put a plastic liner in it. Use a couple cans of spray foam insulation and spray them in the liner. Take the liner and fold over the top of the foam and put a heavy book on top of it in the garbage can. Give it a few hours to cure and pull it out of the can, then peel the plastic off and you have a foam block you can paint on to make your target.

The next way is to get a card board box and stuff it full of equal size pieces of card board and when I say stuff, that’s exactly what I mean. Stuff it so full there is no way you could get another piece in it, the tighter you get it the better it will stop your arrow. I have used both of these DIY targets and they work great!

If you practice like me you will be making a new target once a month, but it’s rewards are well worth it when you take down your first big game animal. I would also recommend taking it easy your first week of practice and work into strengthening those new muscles you will discover you have.

I hope this helps you in your adventure!!!

Robert

Find Robert at Rice Family Creations

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Rational Survival Appearance

July 22, 2014July 22, 2014 James Burnette 1 Comment

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Rational Survival

Today I just want to share with you an interview I did recently. I was interviewed by Kyle of Rational Survival. I had a great time chatting with Kyle. He is also big into crossfit like me. We talked about the importance of fitness and nutrition in the survival community. Why Paleo is best for rational survival. Kyle had some questions about paleo. He was overthinking it like many others. You don’t need to fully understand something to do it. Follow the rules and see how you feel.

I give him a few tips on cheap and easy paleo meals to make. Not every meal has to be expensive. I make meat go further by eating smaller portions of it. I bulk out my meals with leafy greens cooked in fat. I believe in rational survival and part of that is budgeting.

We have a good laugh about how bad out first Crossfit workout was. Kyle was prior service military. After he got out he let his fitness slip. Hell it happens to the best of us. He knew from a rational survival standpoint he knew he needed to get back in shape. Crossfit hands down is the most effective way to increase your fitness. We also talk about our worst workouts. Mine was doing two hard wods in back to back. And my back hated me for it. We also talk about the great community to be found at Crossfit. If you find a good box, gym, you will love it. You will make great friends there that you will not find on the treadmill.

Kyle is a much more prolific podcaster than I. How he pumps out that many great podcast for rational survival I don’t know. I’ve done back to back podcasts and it’s hard work. He’s running a contest right now as well to win 5 ounces of silver. So stop by and check him out.

If you want me to appear on a podcast let me know and I’ll get with them or if you have one drop me a line.

Think this post was worth 20 cents? Consider joining The Survivalpunk Army and get access to exclusive content and discounts!

Also please enter our Reader appreciation contest and help spread the word about our blog.

Looking for the best prices and best customer service in buying Silver and Gold online? Look no further than JM Bullion for all your precious metal needs!

For all your Survival and prepping needs and bags to hold your gear check out Survival Gear Bags

Survival Of The Fit

July 8, 2014April 8, 2015 James Burnette 8 Comments

Today’s post might piss off some of you. Before you go off just thinking, that James guy is a dick, let my words sink in. Im not here to put anyone down, I want to us all to be lifted up. Today I’m talking about weight loss and physical fitness. Especially since healthcare and the Obamacare tax is a hot topic these days. It’s been my main concern in prepping lately. I know many don’t see health and fitness as a prep, and they are dead wrong. Literally. Neglecting a huge facet of survival, one which many others rely on, could be the last mistake you make. Today I’m going to go over some reasons why you might want to shore up this hole in your plan and how to go about doing that.

Launching The Survivalpunk Army

July 4, 2014June 23, 2022 James Burnette 1 Comment

First let me wish each of you a Happy July 4th today. I felt a there was a symbolism to launching my membership program on independence day. That this day was the perfect day for rolling out the oft thought about membership program I wanted to do. I knew when I started Survivalpunk that it felt right. We’ve had some ups and downs but I’m still here and many of you are still. Survivalpunk was meant to be my path to freedom. I decided that it was time to stop over thinking it and put it out there. I suffer from some crippling perfectionism on times and that held up this for too long. No time is ever the right time but now feels damn right. So let me explain what the heck this Survivalpunk Army, SPA, is all about. What you get and why you should join.