Gift Ideas for Your Self-Reliant or Prepper Friends & Family

The holidays are here, be it Christmas or Hanukah. If you are shopping now for the special people on your list you might be wondering what to get these friends and family members. If they are the self-reliant or prepper type you might be a bit stymied to boot!

"We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give."
Winston Churchill

So here are some ideas to get you thinking.

“Stocking Stuffers” can be anything from a key-ring type multi-functional tool, first aid kit, compass or wind chill indicator to a tote bag that connects to your belt, purse or fits in your pocket so your friend can always have a bag or tool handy.

Go Bags, First Aid Kits, non-electric items or old fashioned toys and the like can be purchased from all kinds of places. If your friends sew, knit, crochet, can, reload, hunt, fish or whatever hobby they have, a Gift Certificate to their favorite store will be welcomed. Here are some places for the self-reliant/Prepper type that I feel you get the best bang for your dollar with:

• Cumberland General Store (http://www.cumberlandgeneral.com/) is an American family owned and operated business with a commitment to providing you those hard-to-find back-to-basics items.
• Lehman's, (http://www.lehmans.com/) The supplier of the Amish. Tons of old fashioned home, kitchen, garden, ranch and farming tools as well as toys and games. Oil lamps and parts, handmade pottery and copper cookie cutters; wood-burning cook stoves and retro refrigerators; reminisce with wooden and tin toys, cast iron cookware, hand tools and water pumps.
• Campmor (http://www.campmor.com/) Not just camping but anything wilderness and outdoors. Tents, sleeping bags, boots, tools, food, supplies and they have the most comprehensive first aid kits.
• The Sportsman’s Guide (http://www.sportsmansguide.com/net/Main.aspx?) Name says it all plus ammo, kits, tools, supplies and more.
• Cheaper Than Dirt (http://www.cheaperthandirt.com/) Ammunition, firearm parts & accessories, reloading equipment, kits, supplies and more.
• Emergency Essentials (http://beprepared.com/) Supplies, kits, food storage, tools and more. (An LDS best pick)
• Walton Feed (http://waltonfeed.com/) For open pollinated seeds and dehydrated foods (even gluten free).
• SOL or Survive Outdoors Longer (http://surviveoutdoorslonger.com/) Has a full range of small to go-bag sized kits for emergencies and first aid and much much more …
• American Red Cross Store (http://www.redcrossstore.org/) Has a complete line of non-electric emergency radios, first aid and go-bag kits of all sizes and shapes and more …

The Can Organizer (http://www.thecanorganizer.com/) These handy devils are first in first out rotating storage containers for canned goods. There are three sizes to choose from and range from $12.00 to $16.00 for a package of 4.

Does your Prepper friend or family member have some “books” or other loved documents in digital format? If yes, you can have a few of them printed and bound at Staples or Office Depot and places like that as a gift to your self-reliant relative.

Magazine Subscriptions are another great gift especially if that Prepper family member lives in a different state than you. My favorites are:

• The Backwoodsman http://www.backwoodsmanmag.com/ Also see http://backwoodsmercantile.com/Shop_Backwoods/ for items like: Bags, Books, Camping, Cooking, DVDs, Knives, Lighting, Survival, Tools, Water.
• Backwoods Home http://www.backwoodshome.com/ and Their Store http://www.backwoodshome.com/store/files/generalstore.html for all kinds of items.
• Countryside http://www.countrysidemag.com/ and their book store http://www.countrysidemag.com/store/bookstore.html or library http://www.countrysidemag.com/library.html
• Back Home http://www.backhomemagazine.com/ and their books, products and other items.
• Pioneer Living http://www.pioneerliving.net/ and their online store http://www.pioneerliving.net/thegeneralstore.htm

If your friend has had a particular learning/training course in mind, but has stated that they don’t have the funds for the registration? Well then contact the sponsor of that course and ask if you can pay for it and offer it as a gift certificate or coupon of sorts. Your relative will love you for this!

Books are always a good choice, just be sure your family member or friend is a reader. If they are the self-reliant or Prepper type, they no doubt are.

Read on for a complete list see Gift Ideas at http://www.scribd.com/doc/74318223/Gift-Ideas-for-Your-Self-Reliant-or-Prepper-Friends-Family

Most people walk in and out of your life,
but FRIENDS leave footprints in your heart.
Anonymous

Ok I know I ’left some places out’. I didn’t mention Mother Earth News, Cabela’s, LL Bean, REI, Bass Pro Shop or the like because those places are expensive or just plain ‘yippie-yuppie’ and you can get just as good quality at the places I listed above (except for the boot that made LL Bean famous) for a whole lot less.

Nor did I mention any of the national department stores, as we all know what is available in our area with these, as well as what is available in any local independent store.

I also did not mention the magazine “The New Pioneer” presented by Country Almanac as it is an annual publication and I could not find a subscription source.

And I did not mention any of Ragnar Benson’s books – all of which are darn good. Some sources for his books can be found at: http://www.allbookstores.com/author/Ragnar_Benson.html and http://www.alibris.com/search/books/author/Benson,%20Ragnar or online in PDF format when you search for a particular title.

So use your imagination and listen closely when talking with your Prepper or self-reliant friends and family to get an idea of just what they are looking for. Then get them a gift they will cherish and use past the holiday season.

“The value of a man resides in what he gives
and not in what he is capable of receiving.”
Albert Einstein

TNT

Thanksgiving & Harvest Thanks & Blessings

For each new morning with its light,
For rest and shelter of the night,
For health and food,
For love and friends,
For everything Thy goodness sends.
Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882)

Interested in some uncommon Thanksgiving history or some Fact or Fiction information? Then read on @ Thanksgiving & Harvest Thanks & Blessings

It is not happy people that are thankful.
It is thankful people that are happy.

Prep On ;-}

TNT

Say Hello to 2nd Amendment TV & Security During A Crisis

There is a great site called 2nd Amendment TV that has loads of videos on various things, including Preparedness.

One series of videos that is very good is called Security During A Crisis. It has three parts and is worth every minute you listen and take notes.

Security During A Crisis Part 1 of 3 - How to protect yourself and others


Security During A Crisis Part 2 of 3 - Important factors to consider when trying to protect a fix location.



Security During A Crisis Part 3 of 3 - This is the actual plan on how to defend a fix location.


For additional Prepping and First Aid see:

What the Heck is a Prepper? (10:03)
How to Treat Gunshot & Knife Wounds (10:50)
Medical Kit pt.1 (9:46)
Medical Kit pt.2 (8:13)
Tools every prepper should have (2:38)
Top 5 Antibiotics for SHTF Storage (10:00)
A Complete Beginner's Guide to Handloading for your Rifle (45:03)
Does leaving your magazines loaded hurt them? (11:13)

Lots of great informational and instructional videos covering topics like:

Armed Citizens
Attacks on our rights
Basics
Citizen action
Handguns
High performance
History Kids and guns
Mechanics
Miscellaneous
Reviews
Rifles
Self-defense
Shotguns

And one of my favorites is the U.S. Survival Rifle AR-7 (7:52)

"No power on earth can subjugate you
when you are armed with the sword"
Mahatma Gandhi

Read more @ http://www.scribd.com/doc/72493291/Say-Hello-to-2nd-Amendment-TV-Security-During-a-Crisis

TNT

Armistice - Veterans - Remembrance Day

We Enjoy the Benefits of Freedom Because of the Warriors who Fought Before, and Those Fighting Today!!
We will continue to enjoy these Freedoms Because of the Warriors who Will Fight Tomorrow!!
Thank You!!
Thank the Creator for You!!
We Will Never Forget Your Sacrifices!!
May God Bless You and Yours Always!!

On the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918, an armistice, or temporary cessation of hostilities, was declared between the Allied nations and Germany in the First World War, then known as "the Great War." . Commemorated as Armistice Day beginning the following year, November 11th became a legal federal holiday in the United States in 1938.

"[O]n November 11, 1918, there ended the most unnecessary, the most financially exhausting, and the most terribly fatal of all the wars that the world has ever known. Twenty millions of men and women, in that war, were killed outright, or died later from wounds. The Spanish influenza, admittedly caused by the War and nothing else, killed, in various lands, one hundred million persons more." Thomas Hall Shastid, 1927

Read on to find out when Armistice Day became Veterans Day, what other countries celebrate this day and how many veterans do we have in the U.S. today.

Then go out to THANK a veteran and soldier!

“Greater love than this no one has,
that he lay down his life for his friends.”
John 15:13

TNT

Just How Prepared Are You? - Tests & Quizzes

Tests and Quizzes are rather unruly things, which rely heavily on how you interpret the question. That is why many tests ask the same questions worded differently to get a better idea of the understanding level of the ‘testee’.

With that principle in mind here are what I and my friends consider the best Preparedness or Readiness Quotient tests. They start out short and simple with Answer Keys that are rather precise and continue on to Self Assessment tests that let you decide just how ready you are based on the answers you provide.

Set aside a couple of ‘family nights’ and take a test or two each night. On your last night review how each of you did on the tests. Then plot out a preparedness plan, that works for you and yours, to address on the areas you find yourselves ‘short on’.

Remember that Disasters DO Happen! They come in all sizes, shapes and durations. They are not convenient and they will not wait until your family is all gathered at home ready and waiting.

When you take any of these quizzes imagine that a police officer knocks at your door. Some natural disaster is quickly approaching and you have 45 minutes MAX to evacuate...

• How prepared are you for your Pets, Animals and Livestock?
• How secure is your home for sheltering in place?
• How Cyber Secure are you?
• As a military family how prepared are you?
• It’s cold and you have no fire. What would you do in order to keep warm?
• A sever electrical storm occurs. Where is the safest place to be?
• Do you know how to find the emergency broadcasting channel on the radio?
• How will you and your family communicate in an emergency situation if you were separated?
• If you need life-preserving medication, how long will your current supply last if it’s not immediately available?
• Do you have a list of friends and family, boarding kennels or public evacuation shelters that are willing to take pets if you are evacuated?
• Can the water valve be turned off by hand without the use of the tool? Do you have a tool if one is needed? What about natural gas?
• Are all of your important documents in order and ready to go if you have to evacuate?
• How many gallons of water per day does each person in your family need to survive?
• If trapped in your car during a snowstorm, what's the best strategy?
• In the event of an emergency, which agencies will accept your pets?
• What kills more people on average than all other natural disasters combined?
• Do all of your exterior doors have a good quality deadbolt lock with no less than a 1" throw?
• Are all latch-strike plates on your exterior doors secured with at least 3" screws?
• Does your overhead garage door, if equipped with an automatic opener, use a rolling code for signal transfer to defeat "code grabbers"?
• Are all your bushes, trees and shrubs trimmed to eliminate areas for a person to hide near your doors and windows?
• Do all your sliding glass doors have at least one of the following: track lock, insertion pin lock, hinged door bar, metal or wooden dowel in track?
• Are all your windows secured with an auxiliary keyed, or hex screw window lock? Are the keys or hex keys readily available in an emergency? If you do not have keyed or hex screw locks, are your windows additionally secured by pins or nails?
• Have your auxiliary window locks been installed to allow ventilation while maintaining security?
• Do you backup computer files to an external hard drive or other media weekly?
• Do you use wireless hot spots?
• Is your primary Internet connection wireless?
• What are currently Genetically Modified and commercialized foods?
• Haven’t growers been grafting trees and hybridizing seeds for years? Isn’t this the same thing as genetic modification?
• Have GMOs been proven to be safe for consumption?
• How familiar are you with Alerts and warning systems in your community?
• How often do you update your emergency supplies?
• How often do you participate in some kind of fire or emergency drill?
• Do you know what to do in the first 5 minutes of a crisis?
• How much can you do on your own in the first 48, 72 or 120 hours after a major crisis?

What kind of Prepper are you? Well there are all kinds of course. Use the following to get the general idea of where you stand.

Unconscious: Insurance policies and first aid kits, other than that don’t think too much about it.

Novice: One or more of the following: at least a verbal family plan, go-bag, important documents book, 3 days of food/medical supplies, have researched what likely crises can occur where you live, are aware of other Preppers in your area, have smoke detectors but don’t know if the batteries are good.

Intermediate: The previous, plus one or more of the following: at least an outline of a written family plan, go-bag for each family member and pet, food/medical supplies for 7 days, emergency broadcast radio receiver, are familiar with the local emergency agencies and protocols, have emergency currency of at least several hundred to $1000 dollars, have a loose knit group of other Preppers, have smoke detectors and check the batteries twice a year.

Advanced: The previous, plus one or more of the following: a written family plan, go-bags for each family member and pet plus in each vehicle, food/medical supplies for at least a month up to 1yrs worth, an emergency band radio, some alternate power supply for cooking, lighting and heating, attend a class/seminar at least once a year on self-reliant skills at least once a year have a family disaster drill, are familiar with the local and state emergency agencies and protocols, have emergency currency of at least $1000 dollars in other than paper, have a group of other Preppers that share a secondary retreat and meet at least twice a year, have smoke and CO2 detectors and replace the batteries twice a year, have at least one fully charged fire extinguisher that is checked twice a year.

Expert: The previous, plus one or more of the following: written family plan is reviewed once a year, attend a class/seminar at least 2-3 times a year on a self-reliant skill, have family and or neighborhood crisis drills at least 2 to 3 times a year, have longer term food/medical supplies (2+yrs) and alternate heating, lighting and cooking supplies for up to 2 yrs., have 2-way emergency communications with independent power, are familiar with the local, state and national emergency agencies and protocols - plus have researched other global possibilities and monitor the status at least monthly, have emergency currency in other than paper of more than $1000 dollars, are a member of a group of other Preppers with a group secondary retreat and emergency protocols with activation practice at least twice a year, have working and checked smoke and CO2 detectors and several working and checked fire extinguishers and household fire drills at least twice a year.

To read the tests and review the answer keys see Just How Prepared Are You? - Tests & Quizzes

“A prudent man foresees the difficulties ahead and prepares for them;
the simpleton goes blindly on and suffers the consequences.”
Proverbs 22:3

TNT

Fall Back (tonight) - Spring Forward

On Sunday, November 6, 2011 at 2 a.m., Daylight Saving Time ends in the United States.

OR

Tonight we change our clocks

“Clocks slay time... time is dead as long as it is being clicked off by little wheels; only when the clock stops does time come to life”
William Faulkner

Many fire departments encourage people to change the batteries in their smoke detectors when they change their clocks because Daylight Saving Time provides a convenient reminder. "A working smoke detector more than doubles a person's chances of surviving a home fire," says William McNabb of the Troy Fire Department in Michigan.


More than 90 percent of homes in the United States have smoke detectors, but one-third are estimated to have dead or missing batteries.

For millennia, people have measured time based on the position of the sun; it was noon when the sun was highest in the sky. Sundials were used well into the Middle Ages, at which time mechanical clocks began to appear. Cities would set their town clock by measuring the position of the sun, but every city would be on a slightly different time.

The time indicated by the apparent sun on a sundial is called Apparent Solar Time, or true local time.

The time shown by the fictitious sun is called Mean Solar Time, or local mean time when measured in terms of any longitudinal meridian.

Although not punctual in the modern sense, ancient civilizations adjusted daily schedules to the sun more flexibly than modern DST does, often dividing daylight into twelve hours regardless of day length, so that each daylight hour was longer during summer. For example, Roman water clocks had different scales for different months of the year: at Rome's latitude the third hour from sunrise, hora tertia, started by modern standards at 09:02 solar time and lasted 44 minutes at the winter solstice, but at the summer solstice it started at 06:58 and lasted 75 minutes. After ancient times, equal-length civil hours eventually supplanted unequal, so civil time no longer varies by season. Unequal hours are still used in a few traditional settings, such as some Mount Athos monasteries and all Jewish ceremonies.

The main purpose of Daylight Saving Time (called "Summer Time" in many places in the world) is to make better use of daylight. We change our clocks during the summer months to move an hour of daylight from the morning to the evening. Countries have different change dates.

The official spelling is Daylight Saving Time, not Daylight SavingS Time.

Who Does – Who Doesn’t

In the U.S., clocks change at 2:00 a.m. local time. In spring, clocks spring forward from 1:59 a.m. to 3:00 a.m.; in fall, clocks fall back from 1:59 a.m. to 1:00 a.m. In the EU, clocks change at 1:00 a.m. Universal Time. In spring, clocks spring forward from 12:59 a.m. to 2:00 a.m.; in fall, clocks fall back from 1:59 a.m. to 1:00 a.m.

Most of the United States begins Daylight Saving Time at 2:00 a.m. on the second Sunday in March and reverts to standard time on the first Sunday in November. In the U.S., each time zone switches at a different time.

In the U.S., 2:00 a.m. was originally chosen as the changeover time because it was practical and minimized disruption. Most people were at home and this was the time when the fewest trains were running. It is late enough to minimally affect bars and restaurants, and it prevents the day from switching to yesterday, which would be confusing. It is early enough that the entire continental U.S. switches by daybreak, and the changeover occurs before most early shift workers and early churchgoers are affected.

However, many states restrict bars from serving alcohol between 2:00 a.m. and 6:00 a.m. At 2:00 a.m. in the fall, however, the time switches back one hour. So, can bars serve alcohol for that additional hour? Some states claim that bars actually stop serving liquor at 1:59 a.m., so they have already stopped serving when the time reverts to Standard Time. Other states get solve the problem by saying that liquor can be served until "two hours after midnight." In practice, however, many establishments stay open an extra hour in the fall.

For the U.S. and its territories, Daylight Saving Time is NOT observed in Arizona and the Hopi Reservation, (which is entirely surrounded by the Navajo Nation), Hawaii, American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, the Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands.

The Navajo Nation participates in the Daylight Saving Time policy, even in Arizona, due to its large size and location in three states.

Most of the world (except for countries around the Equator) have implemented DST at one point or another.

Today, approximately 70 countries utilize Daylight Saving Time in at least a portion of the country. Japan, India, and China are the only major industrialized countries that do not observe some form of daylight saving.

Equatorial and tropical countries (lower latitudes) generally do not observe Daylight Saving Time. Since the daylight hours are similar during every season, there is no advantage to moving clocks forward during the summer. China has had a single time zone since May 1, 1980, observing summer Daylight Saving Time from 1986 through 1991; they do not observe DST now.

Daylight saving time is now implemented in over seventy countries worldwide and affects over a billion people each year. Although many countries observe DST, the beginning and end dates are often different than the US. The European Union adopted the summer time period that was used in the United Kingdom for many years which begins on the last Sunday in March and ends on the last Sunday in October.


In the European Union, Summer Time begins and ends at 1:00 a.m. Universal Time (Greenwich Mean Time). It begins the last Sunday in March and ends the last Sunday in October. In the EU, all time zones change at the same moment.


Read on and see the timeline of Standard & Daylight Saving Time from the 1700's to today. Find out some interesting facts about Daylight Saving Time here in the U.S., around the world and just why doesn't Arizona switch to Daylight Saving Time.

When told the reason for Daylight Saving time the old Indian said,
"Only a white man would believe that you could cut a foot off the top of a blanket and sew it to the bottom of a blanket
and have a longer blanket."
Author Unknown

TNT