Top Ten of Everything

Really quite interesting and informative. Make note of where the U.S.A. is listed and not listed … humm …

See the graphs at: http://www.scribd.com/doc/38133528/Top-Ten-of-Everything-Sept-2010

"All truth passes through three stages: First, it is ridiculed. Second, it is violently opposed. Third, it is accepted as being self-evident." Schoepenhauer

TNT

If You Live in New Mexico and Are for the Constitution These Events Are for You!

• Constitution Rally in Santa Fe: New Mexico Sons of Liberty Riders in Santa Fe October 6th @ 3:00 pm
• Introduction To The Constitution with Michael Badnarik Abq. October 16th, 2010 9:00 am - 6:00 pm
• The New Mexico Patriot Alliance FALL SUMMIT 2010 Abq., 15 – 16 October 2010
• Appleseed Project Shoots NM 2010 Roswell, NM - Oct 9-10
• Appleseed Project Shoots NM 2010 Roswell, NM - Dec 04-05
• Appleseed Project Shoots NM 2010 Rio Rancho, NM - Oct 16-17
• Appleseed Project Shoots NM 2010 Las Cruces, NM - Nov 13-14
• Appleseed Project Shoots NM 2010 Carlsbad, NM - Nov 13-14
• Appleseed Project Shoots NM 2010 Albuquerque, NM - Nov 20-21
• C.E.R.T. class Oct 29-31 Albuquerque, NM: Oct. 29 class - 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.; Oct. 30 class - 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. & Oct. 31 class - 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
• Remember The Alamo (National Event) on SonsOfLibertyRiders.com The Alamo, San Antonio Texas October 10, 2010 from 6pm to 9pm

For more details see: http://www.scribd.com/doc/38080960/If-You-Live-in-New-Mexico-and-Are-for-the-Constitution-These-Events-Are-for-You

10 Ways to Identify a Closet Prepper

A Great little ditty ;-}

http://peakoilhausfrau.blogspot.com/2010/06/10-ways-to-identify-closet-prepper.html

“It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is the most adaptable to change.” Charles Darwin

TNT

Week 12 - 24 Weeks of Crisis Supply Procurement

Week 12

First Aid Supplies

• Anti-diarrhea medicine (Lomodium)
• Rubbing alcohol
• Latex gloves
• Ipecac syrup and activated charcoal
• Vitamins and or herbal supplements/remadies
• If needed: Denture care items

To Do

• Show your household how to locate and shut off gas and water to your home
• With your family select a rendezvous site to use when away from your home that is near both your home and any school or work place used by your household members.
• Complete another form to your Documentation Book/Binder
• Record the items you have purchased for crisis use in the Documentation Book/Binder.
• Add any appropriate monies to your money jar.

** When quantities are listed that is per person in your household.

“To be prepared is to anticipate risk and to prudently act toward prevention.” Wes Fessler

From TNT

Essential Liberty Project

Semper Vigilo, Fortis, Paratus, et Fidelis!

I just finished reading “Essential Liberty” and this is a fantastic book! From The Essential Liberty Project

It’s much more than just a founding documents booklet! The Essential Liberty Pocket Reference Guide contains the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. Additionally, an inspiring historical introduction by the Patriot Post's executive editor Mark Alexander, the Oath of Allegiance to the Constitution, the Declaration of the Cause and Necessity of Taking Up Arms, the Virginia Declaration of Rights, The Articles of Confederation, various state plans from the Philadelphia Constitutional Convention, and a wide selection of quotations from the Founding Fathers are all included. (Softcover, 155 pages Measures 4.75" by 3.5")

Find out more about The Essential Liberty Project @ http://essentialliberty.us/

"Essential Liberty Project" is a grassroots enterprise to support the restoration of constitutional integrity, and the first step in that process is to educate our countrymen — to provide our families, friends, colleagues and others with the basic knowledge necessary to understand our Constitution's original intent. To that end, we are in the process of distributing millions of Essential Liberty booklets as a primer on our nation's founding documents and essential liberty.

Order your own copy of this great book @ http://patriotshop.us/index.php?cPath=85

"When The People fear their government, there is TYRANNY. When the government Fears The People, there is LIBERTY." Thomas Jefferson

From TNT

2010 The Year of the Prepper

This phrase is courtesy of New Mexico Preppers Network (NMPN) and American Preppers Network (APN) – both available for free and very, very true!

To quote Humble Wife (NMPN) “The Preppers networks are all about volunteering our knowledge and skills with each other. We share ideas, tips and basically network with each other to survive any type of disaster whether natural, manmade, or economic. Information that you learn and share with others will help everyone learn how to find ‘Freedom Through Teaching Others Self Reliance.’"

There are tons of “prepper”, “survival”, “homesteading” and “self-reliant” sites out there. Some are “raping” the concerned public by charging for almost all of their “advice” and “how-to’s” and others are worth their weight in gold.

NMPN and APN are two that are worth their weight in gold. Don’t forget Americans Networking to Survive (ANTS) for supply line networking. See some of the other sites I have found over the years that I find invaluable to the right in the “Check These Out” and “Links of Interest” panels of this blog page.

Take a look and sign up (it’s free) to not only “chat” and learn from others, but to also receive newsletters and often discounts to items you may need. (See New Mexico Preppers Network for joining how-to)

“By failing to prepare you are preparing to fail.” Benjamin Franklin

From TNT

Life’s Pollution

No matter where we live we are surrounded by all the sights, smells and sounds of the world around us. We don’t think twice that we see more stars in the country sky, that at night sound seems to travel farther or that we smell that fire in a fireplace from the other side of town at night.

As Preppers we need to stop, think and plan about this and how the removal of this “pollution” will affect our SHTF world. This is especially true for us urban Preppers.

If the crisis we are preparing for will remove electricity and or fossil fuel transportation forgetting this could be deadly. We will be confronted with a SHTF world where sight, sound and smells will be more easily detected – even during the day!

We will not be able to just light a fire in the fireplace to keep warm or to cook or use our outdoor kitchens in place of our inside stoves. Using an axe to chop wood or a candle flickering behind a curtain will become beacons to all those around us. The sights, smells and sounds of these activities will be detected for at least a mile.

What is the topology of your urban area? Is your retreat located in a part of the city where it will now be more readily seen? Do you live near a heavily wooded city park? Do you live in a part of town that is known for its larger properties or is a rural like pocket? Is there a river or pond near you? Consider this and how it may “draw” more desperate people to your area for water, building and or fuel material or what necessities to life they think you have.

This means that we must plan now to reduce these signs that seem to tell one and all that we are surviving quite nicely, thank you. Think about getting a wood stove or fireplace insert that re-burns what usually goes directly up the chimney so that there is nothing more than heat waves that are seen or smelled from the outside. Sure if someone has a thermal scope or the like they will still be able to detect this from far away, but how many people actually have one of these things or would even think to use it in such a fashion?

If you have your own water well or generator, plan now to enclose it in some sort of sound proof structure and alternate exhaust for the generator. (Although what you will do for generator fuel in a long term SHTF world is something you need to consider too.)

Make sure you have a grill that you can use inside your closed garage so the smoke and smell of your cooking cannot be detected from miles away.

Make some kind of easily installed blackout devices for your windows, doors and skylights. Remember just closing the blinds or drapes will not do the job and you are in a SHTF world so tape or nail marks on your walls and ceilings are no longer important.

Try to find a place that is enclosed or surrounded by lots of shrubs, bushes and trees to cut your firewood in. Got a good sized shed you can sound proof for this? Find anything you can to muffle and hinder the sound from traveling easily.

Find some way to hinder the sight of your outdoor garden or food animals so they cannot be seen easily in the now “life pollution” free SHTF world. The smells and sounds of any livestock need to be considered and minimized too.

Where you cannot mute these smells, sounds and sights be sure your defense plans take this into account and are workable. Make sure you have good deterrents in place for your property line (outer perimeter) and access points to your home (inner perimeter).

Remember too that instead of protecting your home, loved ones and possessions from the usual one or two intruders looking for quick money, you may very well have to deal with a handful or more people at a time who are desperate for the necessity to life items that they lack and you seem to have.

Now is the time to get your MacGyver thinking caps on. To get you started here are a few things some friends and acquaintances are doing: http://www.scribd.com/doc/37387276/Life-s-Pollution

Got any more cheap, easy and effective ideas?

“Forewarned, forearmed; to be prepared is half the victory.” Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra

Prep On!

From TNT

Week 11 - 24 Weeks of Crisis Supply Procurement

Week 11

Grocery Store

• 1 large can juice
• Large plastic food bags (ZipLoc type)
• 1 box quick energy snack, protein or food bar
• 3 rolls toilet paper
• 1 Package cheap dish towels or ShamWow
• Sunscreen and Chapstick

To Do

• Store a roll of quarters for emergency calls, etc.
• With your household locate as many working pay phones within walking distance of your home, school and place of work
• Complete another form to your Documentation Book/Binder
• Record the items you have purchased for crisis use in the Documentation Book/Binder.
• Add any appropriate monies to your money jar.

** When quantities are listed that is per person in your household.

“Despair is most often the offspring of ill-preparedness“ Don Williams, Jr

From TNT ;-}

Preppin Event In Albq., NM Saturday September 18 @ 10AM

For those of you that live in Albuquerque, NM Check out: NM Survival - RATS Ready.Always.To.Survive @ http://www.meetup.com/New-Mexico-Survival/

When - Saturday September 18 @ 10AM
Where - park/bosque trail parking lot - not meeting the visitor center parking lot - AT the parking lot immediately adjacent to Montano. It is located just east of Coors on Montano, on the South side of the road. (If you are coming from coors, turn onto Montano going east and immediately look to the right for a road leading to a parking lot. If you start crossing the bridge..you missed it. Lots of people park and ride their bikes or jog. There are also some nice animals carved out of large pieces of wood so you will know your in the right place.)
Organizer: Jason Hill 550-0838 if you have any problems.

According to the site:
This is just going to be a meet and greet. Im gonna grab some coffee and hang out to see who shows, which will probably only be a few people. We will discuss some ideas for future classes/meetups. Ideas to network and help the group grow..etc.

Hope to see some of you there (If I can get a ride) !

Keep On Preppin'

TNT

Least We Forget - September 11, 2001 - Patriot Day

Freedom Is Never Free

“Terrorism is the war of the poor, and war is the terrorism of the rich.” Peter Ustinov

A Prayer of Hope and Healing for Patriot Day

Past, Present and Future - They Died for America, for us!

Dear Heavenly Father,

Today is a difficult day. The memories are painful and some of the wounds I fear may never heal. Yet I pray you will help me to go on living for truth, firm in my hope of your salvation. May I live for you, Lord, and by doing so, be an example to my friends and family. I pray, just like Jesus, I may learn obedience through these things that I have suffered. Help me not to question why, yet even if I do, give me courage to continue to trust you. Help me take the comfort and strength you've poured into my life and use it to comfort and strengthen others who need hope.

I pray I might become a better person and help make the world a better place because of this terrible event. Thank you for the heroes that gave so sacrificially on September 11. Help me to remember their courage and learn from them. I want my life to be worthy of you Lord, so make of it what you desire, and use me to fulfill your purposes. May the evil of that day cause me and my family to work harder to do good on this Earth and to bring your light into the dark places. Help me to never stop believing in you and living my life for you.

Lord, heal all those who were crushed and broken on that day. May they come to experience your presence and know your peace.

Amen.

“Forewarned, forearmed; to be prepared is half the victory.” Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra

See & read more @ http://www.scribd.com/Least-We-Forget-September-11-2001-Patriot-Day/d/37254307


TNT

How People React to a Crisis

I have been doing some research, for about 8 months now, into the phases of a crisis and what the common emotional and physical stress factors are for us humans. What I have found is that there are all different definitions, descriptions and how-to’s out there and they seem to depend on what the source is: From medical and physiological personnel to S & R and survivors.

There also seems to be quite a bit of miss-information about people and panic. Basically the panic we often read about in books and see in movies is exaggerated. Most humans don’t really go into a panic ridden haze and go nuts or act irrationally, putting ourselves and others in danger. Yes, a small percentage do panic in this fashion, but we rarely have mass hysteria. September 11, 2001 is a perfect example of this truth.

To top it off, the more “expert” the source, the more “fine lines” seem to separate the phases and the more complex the description. So here is my layperson explanation and you can take it for what it is – one individual’s opinion, nothing more.

Here are what I see as the Three Crisis Reaction Phases that we humans go through when confronted with a crisis.

• Shock – The deer caught in the headlights. We are immobile and non-responsive.
• Denial – This is all a bad dream and I’ll wake up and everything will be honky dory. We are still not actually doing anything to help ourselves but we are aware of our surroundings.
• Action – We accept what has just happened and start to actually DO something – Like assess injuries, who is around us, where our loved ones might be and what course of action to take to meet up and be safe.

However no matter how many phases you define these simple facts remain:

• The quicker we get to actually DOING something to help ourselves the better our survival chances are.
• The more detailed pre-planning and pre-warning we have and do the better chance of survival we have.
• The more we practice this worst case scenario the quicker we act instead of react.

So make a plan, build your crisis kits and have household and/or group crisis drills. Be Prepared, Be Ready, Act Now and you will be not just a survivor, but someone that does so with the least amount of trials and tribulations – before, during and after.

“I am prepared for the worst but hope for the best” Benjamin Disraeli (British Prime Minister & novelist 1804-1881)

Good Luck ;-}

From TNT

Labor Day - Good Will to All

Labor Day is a special day. Even though it is not a religious celebration, many faiths happily celebrate it because it recognizes the value of an activity essential for human beings: work.

Labor Day, the first Monday in September, came from Matthew Maguire, a machinist from Paterson, N. J., who wanted to recognize those “who from rude nature have delved and carved all the grandeur we behold.” and ultimately a formal creation of the labor movement and is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of American workers. It constitutes a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country.

In most of the European and Latin American countries, the equivalent of Labor Day is celebrated on May 1, a date that Pope Pius XII wanted to include in the Catholic liturgical calendar, creating the Feast of St. Joseph the Worker.

This relation between faith and work is not new in the Christian tradition. In the Gospel, Jesus includes workers, field laborers and shepherds in his parables to teach us about God and his Kingdom and reminds us that “the laborer deserves his keep.”

In the seventh century, a great saint, St. Benedict of Nursia, founded the order of monks who in time would be known as Benedictines. Benedict, wanted his monks, even though they lived in a monastery praising God, to also work in order to earn their livelihood. They would worship God not only through prayer, but also through their work. In this way, the Benedictine monks helped improve society in Europe. Their monasteries expanded throughout the European continent, giving it spiritual unity. They also taught agricultural techniques to the people and preserved the classical culture through their work copying the great Greek and Roman philosophical and artistic works.

St. Alphonsus Liguori used to say sharply: “He who doesn’t pray, won’t be saved.” With this phrase, the saint wanted to emphasize how important prayer is for our life. In the same way that work guarantees bodily food, prayer is the nourishment for the spirit. Without prayer, the soul dies, just like the body does when it is deprived of food and water.

Anyway, the first Labor Day holiday in the U.S. was celebrated on Tuesday, September 5, 1882, in New York City, in accordance with the plans of the Central Labor Union. The Central Labor Union held it second Labor Day holiday just a year later, on September 5, 1883.

In 1884, the first Monday in September was selected as the holiday, as originally proposed, and the Central Labor Union urged similar organizations in other cities to follow the example of New York and celebrate a “workingmen’s holiday” on that date. The idea spread with the growth of labor organizations, and in 1885 Labor Day was celebrated in many industrial centers of the country.

The form that the observance and celebration of Labor Day should take was outlined in the first proposal of the holiday — a street parade to exhibit to the public “the strength and esprit de corps of the trade and labor organizations” of the community, followed by a festival for the recreation and amusement of the workers and their families. This became the patters for the celebrations of Labor Day. Speeches by prominent men and women were introduced later as more emphasis was placed upon the economic and civic significance of the holiday. Still later, by a resolution of the American Federation of Labor Convention of 1909, the Sunday preceding Labor Day was adopted as Labor Sunday and dedicated to the spiritual and educational aspects of the labor movement.

Labor Day's cultural and spiritual revolution was founded in a simple motto: “ora et labora,” pray and work. Since its beginnings then, many faiths have intimately linked these two activities: prayer and work; which was ultimately expressed in the founding of our country. So, although it is a secular day, a number of organizations and houses of worship express good wishes for the day with prayers.

For everyone who works to live, or lives to work, today is the day we honor the working man and working woman. Some of us "work," yet receive no paycheck! Whatever your hourly wage or annual salary, whatever work you do or service you provide, may you be blessed by wealth in whatever currency in which you trade, and may you prosper at least as much as your wildest dreams, your hearts' desires. I could find no "special" prayer in my soul for today so here are some of my favorites that move the spirits and direct good will to all of you:

Blessed Are You, Our God, Who Enhances Our Lives with Work For the gift of work, we are grateful.

We are thankful for the dignity and creative challenge of our unique tasks.

For the work that ennobles us, that lifts up our spirits, we are grateful.

By means of these labors, we are able to give flesh to our spiritual dreams and to work out the salvation of the earth.

We take time to thank You for those common tasks that we must perform each day, those necessary labors of life by which, according to Your divine plan, we are also able to create the Kingdom here in our midst.

Help us, Lord our God, to use the work of this day – to perform it with mindfulness and attention, with care and devotion – that it will be holy and healing for us and for all the earth.

Blessed are You, Lord our God, who enhances our lives with work.

Amen.

Prayer of Blessing the Work of Our Hands
Prayer by Diann Neu from Imaging the Word: An Arts and Lectionary Resources, Volume 1, 1994

Blessed be the works of your hands, O Holy One.

Blessed be these hands that have touched life.

Blessed be these hands that have nurtured creativity.

Blessed be these hands that have held pain.

Blessed be these hands that have embraced with passion.

Blessed be these hands that have tended gardens.

Blessed be these hands that have closed in anger.

Blessed be these hands that have planted new seeds.

Blessed be these hands that have harvested ripe fields.

Blessed be these hands that have cleaned, washed, mopped, scrubbed.

Blessed be these hands that have become knotty with age.

Blessed be these hands that are wrinkled and scarred from doing justice.

Blessed be these hands that have reached out and been received.

Blessed be these hands that hold the promise of the future.

Blessed be the works of your hands, O Holy One.

Prayer for the Worker
Rabbi Melanie Aron

As we gather here today, help us to remember our responsibilities as your hands in the world.
May we never be satisfied with our prayers for the welfare of our communities, but add our actions to our words. So long as some are denied basic human rights of fair working conditions, of fair pay and of health care, we cannot rest. Blessed may we be in gathering today. Blessed may we be in going forth to work for justice.


We Are Workers
Prayer by Archbishop Oscar Romero

It helps, now and then, to step back and take a long view.

The kingdom is not only beyond our efforts, it is even beyond our vision.

We accomplish in our lifetime only a tiny fraction of the magnificent enterprise that is God's work.

Nothing we do is complete, which is a way of saying that the kingdom always lies beyond us.

No statement says all that could be said.

No prayer fully expresses our faith.

No confession brings perfection.

No pastoral visit brings wholeness.

No program accomplishes the church's mission.

No set of goals and objectives includes everything.

This is what we are about.

We plant the seeds that one day will grow.

We water seeds already planted,knowing that they hold future promise.

We lay foundations that will need further development.

We provide yeast that produces far beyond our capabilities.

We cannot do everything, and there is a sense of liberation in realizing that. This enables us to do something, and to do it very well. It may be incomplete, but it is a beginning, a step along the way, an opportunity for the Lord's grace to enter and do the rest.

We may never see the end results, but that is the difference between the master builder and the worker.

We are workers, not master builders; ministers, not messiahs.

We are prophets of a future not our own.

Amen.

Abundance Prayer
Written by theotherbed on Monday, September 7, 2009

Dear God, Where my thinking is contracted and limited, Expand my mind.

When I feel doubt about my ability to care for myself, Heal my disbelief.

When I feel confused about money, Bring me clarity and peace.

When I experience lack or want, Fill my cup with Your love and generosity.

When I feel less than worthy, less than powerful, Impart to me Your Love and Strength.

So that my bank account is always increasing, and that I may give and receive in the abundant Spirit that reflects Your Infinite Good.

Amen.

A prayer for workers
by Mark Noonan September 6th, 2010

O God, the Creator of all things, You have laid the law of labor upon the human race. Grant, we beseech You, that by the example and protection of St. Joseph we may perform the work You command and attain to the reward that You promise. Through our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

On this Labor Day, especially, let us call to mind and offer our prayers for those who labor – and those who are unable to do so because of the difficulties of our economy. God grant that these bad times pass speedily away, and that we all endure them in good cheer and with loving generosity for those who are worst affected.

Prayer for Labor Day
National Interfaith Worker Justice 2007 materials.

God of love and justice, we come to You this Labor Day asking for Your presence and guidance. You have asked us to walk with our brothers and sisters and told us there are no strangers among us. Yet, we still turn against You and the law You have given us to love one another as we love ourselves. As the Psalm says, we know that good will comes to those who are generous and lend freely, and to those who conduct their affairs with justice. However, we have sometimes failed to be generous with our time and resources, and have neglected opportunities to treat others with human dignity.

God, as we remember those who are struggling and organizing for a living wage, healthcare, and human dignity in their workplaces, remind us this Labor Day that You have called us to walk in solidarity with our brothers and sisters, as we conduct our affairs with love and justice. May it be so.


A Labor Day Prayer of Confession
By Tom & Amanda

God, you made the world and everything in it. You are Lord of heaven and earth and do not live in temples built by labor, and you are not served by human labor, as if you needed anything, because you yourself give all humanity life and breath and everything else.

We confess that far too often, we do not remember that you are the source of every good gift, of every breath we take and of every calorie of energy we exert.

And we confess that in our darkest moments, we do not want gifts, handouts. Because to us, handouts are for losers. Handouts are for dropouts. Handouts are for beggars on roadsides. Handouts are not for us.

Because we are a people who labor. Our bodies labor to earn so we can eat, buy, sell and secure. Our minds labor with anxiety over all we must accomplish and all we leave undone. Our souls labor endlessly to win your affections – as though your heart could be won by the sweat of our brow. We labor, we produce, we strive, and all too often we consider ourselves worthy and deserving of that with which you have given us.

We confess that we often allow the labor of our hands to distract us from the work that your Spirit is accomplishing in our world – in your world.

Let us remember that you created us in six days, that at the end of your labors, you rested.

Let us remember that the work of our hands is to sow the seeds of our own destruction, not our salvation.

And let us remember that from those first days, you did not rest again until you laid in the Tomb, having accomplished in your work the redemption that all our labors could not purchase for us.

Let us remember that our salvation was a gift given out of the very depths of your love for us, and that it was given freely, graciously.

Let us remember that we are more than producers, more than the sum of our labors, more than our portfolios and purchasing power. Because at the foot of the cross, we are all beggars in need of the handout you so freely extend to us.

This is a weekend in which we break the surface of the sea of our daily toil to draw a collective breath to break from our many labors. So teach us in this time to rest as you created us to rest. Teach us to pause from our production. And in that rest, in that pause, give us eyes to see where your Spirit is already at work, that we may join into your labors. Because we confess that your work -

- proclaiming good news to the poor
- freedom to the prisoner
- healing the sick
- releasing those who suffer oppression
- and doing the hard work of justice
- these labors are what the Spirit anointed your Son to accomplish, and what we as his body are anointed still to do. Let us fill our brief lives with the work of your kingdom. Let the work of our hands become the work of your body, and your Son.

For in this hour together, we look to Jesus, through whom we know and receive your many good gifts and in whose name we gratefully pray.


Labor Day Prayer for Reflection
By Susan Helene Kramer of BellaOnlineCOM

May we reflect lightheartedly and prayerfully on this day of celebration by sitting in meditation and reflecting on the following verses!

Time for rest; time for play
We celebrate on Labor Day.

Throughout the year we give our best
We each deserve a little rest.

The days and weeks and years march on
Work well done an unspoken song.

We thank you Lord for giving life
Even when work seems more like strife.

In work we have a chance to show
Our talents perhaps, but surely to grow.

Interrelating and doing our jobs
Helps us remember we’re an important cog.

On the wheel of life we turn and go on
Fulfilled when we say
"A good job we've done."

May The Creator, The Fates, The Force be with you and yours always.

From TNT - a 50 Something, soon to be rural homesteading, Prepper ;-}

Week 10 - 24 Weeks of Crisis Supply Procurement

Week 10

Hardware/Home Improvement/Sports, Misc Store

• Waterproof portable plastic container with lid for use for important papers not accounted for in your Documentation Book/Binder
• Portable AM/FM radio – preferably hand crank, solar or rechargeable battery operated
• Blankets and or sleeping bag for each household member
• 3 day supply of MRE’s per person and go-bags

To Do

• Make copies of all important papers and add to your Documentation Book/Binder
• Learn something new, like making lye, soap or candle making
• Complete another form to your Documentation Book/Binder
• Record the items you have purchased for crisis use in the Documentation Book/Binder.
• Add any appropriate monies to your money jar.

** When quantities are listed that is per person in your household.

"Emergency preparedness is a team sport.“ Eric Whitaker

From a 50 Something, soon to be rural homesteading, Prepper ;-}

September is National Preparedness Month - Are You Ready?

Now I prefer “crisis” to disaster or emergency, however if you are a novice Prepper Ready.GOV is a good place to start and this is the month to do it! Check your local news media and internet for events in your area and get started now.

Taking Action to Be Ready

By Darryl J. Madden, Director, Ready Campaign

Do you have emergency supplies set aside in case there’s a disaster? Does your family have an emergency plan? For many people, planning for an emergency or disaster isn’t a priority.

According to the 2009 Citizen Corps National Survey, only 36 percent of individuals believed there was a high likelihood of a natural disaster to EVER happen in their community. Many people think they have everything they need in the event of an emergency at hand, and can simply “grab and go.”

You are your family’s first responder, and in many ways you are your neighbor’s first responder. All of us as participants in our communities and members of our families need to take concrete steps to proactively prepare for emergencies and disasters. Local, state, and national authorities are going to help, but they may not be able to get to you right away. We all need to be prepared for those first 72 hours before help can reach us.

September is National Preparedness Month (NPM)—the perfect time to take action and get your family Ready. Readiness comes in many forms and preparedness is everyone’s responsibility. We have to work together, as a team, to ensure that our families, neighborhoods, and communities are Ready. Get an emergency supply kit. Make a family emergency plan. Be informed about the risks in your area. Work with your neighbor and know who might need just a little extra help.

To help get your family started, Ready Kids is a family-friendly, children-oriented tool to help parents and teachers educate children, ages 8-12, about emergencies and how they can help families better prepare. The Ready Kids Web site at Ready.GOV features fun activities such as a Scavenger Hunt, Pack It Up Matching game, crossword puzzles and coloring pages, as well as age-appropriate, step-by-step instructions on what families can do to better prepare for emergencies and the role kids can play in that effort.

It’s important to explain to your children that families can prepare for emergencies before they take place and that they can help, too. By doing so, you can alleviate anxiety if an emergency does occur and help to nurture a more prepared society for generations to come. Visit ready.gov/kids today and get Ready!

From a 50 Something, soon to be rural homesteading, Prepper ;-}