Originally published at Notes from the bunker…. You can comment here or there.

One of the interesting side-effects of being Commander Zero is that you have to learn tons of stuff. Stuff that, at times, seems exclusive to the other stuff. Things Ive had to learn so far include rappeling, knot tying, advanced first aid, CPR, camp cooking, canning, dehydrating food, purifying water, basic electronics, basic ham radio, cryptography, map reading, UTM coordinate system, bicycle repair, ammo manufacturing, improvised munitions, gardening, food preservation, butchering, principles of shortwave radio, small unit tactics, home economics, etc, etc, etc. I mean, its an endless list…. probably the biggest thing Ive had to learn is strategic thinking/planning.

Things still to learn? Welding, bulldozer/backhoe operation, more radio operations, EMT/first responder course, more electronics, carpentry, plumbing, livestock management, etc, etc.

Fortunately the internet has been very very good to me in terms of helping me find reference material. All the books Ive needed Ive been able to track down and, lemme tell you, that fills up a bookshelf pretty quick. But, as Ayn Rand said “Mans primary tool of survival is his mind”. Knowledge is power and all that….which I firmly believe. So..back to updating my Amazon wish list with books and guides and handbooks and tech manuals….

One of the interesting side-effects of being Commander Zero is that you have to learn tons of stuff. Stuff that, at times, seems exclusive to the other stuff. Things Ive had to learn so far include rappeling, knot tying, advanced first aid, CPR, camp cooking, canning, dehydrating food, purifying water, basic electronics, basic ham radio, cryptography, map reading, UTM coordinate system, bicycle repair, ammo manufacturing, improvised munitions, gardening, food preservation, butchering, principles of shortwave radio, small unit tactics, home economics, etc, etc, etc. I mean, its an endless list…. probably the biggest thing Ive had to learn is strategic thinking/planning.

Things still to learn? Welding, bulldozer/backhoe operation, more radio operations, EMT/first responder course, more electronics, carpentry, plumbing, livestock management, etc, etc.

Fortunately the internet has been very very good to me in terms of helping me find reference material. All the books Ive needed Ive been able to track down and, lemme tell you, that fills up a bookshelf pretty quick. But, as Ayn Rand said “Mans primary tool of survival is his mind”. Knowledge is power and all that….which I firmly believe. So..back to updating my Amazon wish list with books and guides and handbooks and tech manuals….

Originally published at Notes from the bunker…. You can comment here or there.

This is the kit I carry with me most of the time in my backpack. The case is a very, very handy ‘utility pouch’ from Outdoor Research. OR makes some nice gear and Ive been quite pleased with their stuff over the years. (I am expecially enamored with their Gore-Tex boonie cap.)

The case folds out into a roll that has plenty of pockets. Theres also a zippered see-through mesh compartment for small stuff. Couple lashing points on the exterior for a sling, keeper, strap or sliding onto a belt. Nice piece of gear.

The Browning is to show comparitive size. Actual dimensions are..uhm..lets see….2″x6″x10″..approx.

Handy enough to fit in my backpack without taking up too much room. I was originally using a hard plastic box but it took up too much space and wasnt flexible enough in terms of how items could be kept in it. I knew I was looking for something very much like what I have now and only got this case just last week. Only thing Id change is to put some ALICE webbing on the outside to allow attachment to my other gear or to allow attachment of small pouches or accessories.

first aid kit pics

Originally published at Notes from the bunker…. You can comment here or there.

Someone asked about first aid kits. Theres a school of thought that says you should only pack in a first aid kit things that you know how to use, and that if you pack things you *dont* know how to use you will wind up using them inappropriately and cause harm to someone.

I think thats a well-intentioned and incredibly stupid arguement.

Because I dont know how to use something doesnt mean there wont be someone around who will. For example, we frequently read of car accidents where the victim was saved by a nurse or doctor who was driving home and saw the accident. Same thing. If I keep, say, some sutre material or that sort of thing in my kit, *I* may not know how to use it but the doctor or nurse or paramedic who wound up hunkering down in the subway tunnel with me will.

Onto the issue at hand…

I have no less than a half dozen first aid kits of varying degrees of complexity. Theres one at home which is pretty complete, one at the shop, and one I carry around in my backpack. There are four more, as complete as my home one, in the bunker…each of those four exactly identical.

Heres whats in the one I carry around in my bag:
Assorted sized band aids up to the 2″x3″ and 4″x4″ size inc. finger bandages, eye bandages, etc.
1″x2″ gauze pads
2″x2″ gauze pads
4″x4″ gauze pads
4″x4″ sponges
1.5″ rolled gauze
2″ rolled gauze
two rolls of waterproof tape
’single serving’ packets of aspirin, ibuprofin, acetominiphon and Tylenol
2″ compress bandages
‘ketchup packet’ sized ’single serving’ packets of Neosporin and Bactine antiseptic wipes
Butterfly closures
Military compress bandages
Burn gel, again, in the handy single serving packets
Xacto knife and blades
Tweezers
Two pair sterile latex gloves
Alcohol wipes

In the one at home/shop, its more of the above, in larger quantities as well as:
Bottle of Betadine
Bottle of alcohol
Bottle of hydrogen peroxide
Bottle of sterile water
Disposable instant ice packs
Disposable instant heat packs
Elastic bandages
SAM splint
Sutures and sutre holders
Various OTC pain relievers and anti-inflammatories
Theres more to the kits at home but I cant think of them right now…

When I go to the supermarket I usually keep a small list in my bag of what I have in the various kits and then I can know what I need to get. For example, I picked up 16 Bactine antiseptic wipes, each in a sealed packet, and divvied them up between the kits.

These arent complete by any stretch…the book “Where There Is No Doctor” tells you everything you need to know to fix most minor stuff..inc. dosages and applications of prescription meds. The back of the book is unbelievably handy for when your scrounging through a looted pharmacy and need to know what meds are worth salvaging and which arent. Its definitely the “If you can only have one book..” book.

Probably the best reference for how to stock a kit , that Ive found, is in Wilderness Medicine by Forgey.

As I said, my standard is to imagine if I tumbled off my mountain bike into a pile of deadfall, fell off the side of cliff, escaped from a building collapse or that sort of thing…what would I need right then right now to get me up and running again and at the same time minimize my chances of infection or further damage? If I had access to them, I’d also include lidocaine, syringes, better suture material, antibiotics, anti seizure meds, muscle relaxants, and a host of other meds that are ‘prescription only’.

For my needs (current and projected) I think Ive got a pretty solid foundation. I need to take a First Repsonder and EMT course (already took CPR) to really get a solid background in this sort of thing.

Someone asked about first aid kits. Theres a school of thought that says you should only pack in a first aid kit things that you know how to use, and that if you pack things you *dont* know how to use you will wind up using them inappropriately and cause harm to someone.

I think thats a well-intentioned and incredibly stupid arguement.

Because I dont know how to use something doesnt mean there wont be someone around who will. For example, we frequently read of car accidents where the victim was saved by a nurse or doctor who was driving home and saw the accident. Same thing. If I keep, say, some sutre material or that sort of thing in my kit, *I* may not know how to use it but the doctor or nurse or paramedic who wound up hunkering down in the subway tunnel with me will.

Onto the issue at hand…

I have no less than a half dozen first aid kits of varying degrees of complexity. Theres one at home which is pretty complete, one at the shop, and one I carry around in my backpack. There are four more, as complete as my home one, in the bunker…each of those four exactly identical.

Heres whats in the one I carry around in my bag:
Assorted sized band aids up to the 2″x3″ and 4″x4″ size inc. finger bandages, eye bandages, etc.
1″x2″ gauze pads
2″x2″ gauze pads
4″x4″ gauze pads
4″x4″ sponges
1.5″ rolled gauze
2″ rolled gauze
two rolls of waterproof tape
‘single serving’ packets of aspirin, ibuprofin, acetominiphon and Tylenol
2″ compress bandages
‘ketchup packet’ sized ‘single serving’ packets of Neosporin and Bactine antiseptic wipes
Butterfly closures
Military compress bandages
Burn gel, again, in the handy single serving packets
Xacto knife and blades
Tweezers
Two pair sterile latex gloves
Alcohol wipes

In the one at home/shop, its more of the above, in larger quantities as well as:
Bottle of Betadine
Bottle of alcohol
Bottle of hydrogen peroxide
Bottle of sterile water
Disposable instant ice packs
Disposable instant heat packs
Elastic bandages
SAM splint
Sutures and sutre holders
Various OTC pain relievers and anti-inflammatories
Theres more to the kits at home but I cant think of them right now…

When I go to the supermarket I usually keep a small list in my bag of what I have in the various kits and then I can know what I need to get. For example, I picked up 16 Bactine antiseptic wipes, each in a sealed packet, and divvied them up between the kits.

These arent complete by any stretch…the book “Where There Is No Doctor” tells you everything you need to know to fix most minor stuff..inc. dosages and applications of prescription meds. The back of the book is unbelievably handy for when your scrounging through a looted pharmacy and need to know what meds are worth salvaging and which arent. Its definitely the “If you can only have one book..” book.

Probably the best reference for how to stock a kit , that Ive found, is in Wilderness Medicine by Forgey.

As I said, my standard is to imagine if I tumbled off my mountain bike into a pile of deadfall, fell off the side of cliff, escaped from a building collapse or that sort of thing…what would I need right then right now to get me up and running again and at the same time minimize my chances of infection or further damage? If I had access to them, I’d also include lidocaine, syringes, better suture material, antibiotics, anti seizure meds, muscle relaxants, and a host of other meds that are ‘prescription only’.

For my needs (current and projected) I think Ive got a pretty solid foundation. I need to take a First Repsonder and EMT course (already took CPR) to really get a solid background in this sort of thing.

Originally published at Notes from the bunker…. You can comment here or there.

So, Commander, what did you do today to assure the safety and security of you and your merry band of LMI’s today?

Small purchases:
4″x4″ gauze pads – divided amongst the first aid kits at the shop, home and in my backpack
Bactine First Aid Wipes – divided amongst the first aid kits at the shop, home and in my backpack
Butterfly colsures – to replace a pack in my first aid kit at home that was used
Loaded an additional 50 rounds of 9mm FMJ ammo
Picked up remaindered meat to vaccuum seal and toss in the deep freeze

Total expenditures today: $13.97
Preventing a nasty scrape fronm getting infected and gangrenous in a post-apocalyptic world: priceless
————————–
I swear, you wanna see a ‘Homeland Security’ that works and doesnt step on a single one of your rights, you put me in charge of that agency…I’ll show you security.

So, Commander, what did you do today to assure the safety and security of you and your merry band of LMI’s today?

Small purchases:
4″x4″ gauze pads – divided amongst the first aid kits at the shop, home and in my backpack
Bactine First Aid Wipes – divided amongst the first aid kits at the shop, home and in my backpack
Butterfly colsures – to replace a pack in my first aid kit at home that was used
Loaded an additional 50 rounds of 9mm FMJ ammo
Picked up remaindered meat to vaccuum seal and toss in the deep freeze

Total expenditures today: $13.97
Preventing a nasty scrape fronm getting infected and gangrenous in a post-apocalyptic world: priceless
————————–
I swear, you wanna see a ‘Homeland Security’ that works and doesnt step on a single one of your rights, you put me in charge of that agency…I’ll show you security.

Originally published at Notes from the bunker…. You can comment here or there.

“…and amongst the gas lines, darkened cities and abandoned checkpoints a figure appeared saying ‘Be cool. I can handle this.’ And thus the Age Of Zero was upon us…” – The Book Of Zero Vol. I

Being Commander Zero is not all sunshine and stun grenades…

Blackouts in the east, a very simple pipeline problem causing ruckus in the southwest, the government is still…well, doing whatever it is government does..and the external threats are still around.

Ive been saying for a long time that the things that are gonna ragnarock-your-world were less likely to be kooks with nukes but rather various infrastructure failures that would drop us into a third-world lifestyle similar to modern day Russia.

So..lets recap: every person with a pair of bolt cutters and a set of jumper cables now knows that you can cripple the northeast through their antiquated power system. Every nut with a shovel and a hammer now knows there are exactly two pipelines to bring gas into Arizona.

Want a few more? head over to cryptome.org sometime and see the aerial maps of the phone trunks that service the entire country..all conveniently located in one concrete building in NYC just waiting for a truck bomb. We’ve always had these vulnerabilities, its just that up to now no one has really gone out of their way to exploit them.

But you know what? Not. My. Problem.

My job is to prepare for it and come out on top of it with me and my merry band of LMI’s. Natural selection in action, kiddo.

I dont know how Im going to do it, but Im going to be about a zillion percent more self-sufficient, armored, prepped and educated by New Years 2005. That gives me about 16 months to make some serious inroads from where I am now.

“…and amongst the gas lines, darkened cities and abandoned checkpoints a figure appeared saying ‘Be cool. I can handle this.’ And thus the Age Of Zero was upon us…” – The Book Of Zero Vol. I

Being Commander Zero is not all sunshine and stun grenades…

Blackouts in the east, a very simple pipeline problem causing ruckus in the southwest, the government is still…well, doing whatever it is government does..and the external threats are still around.

Ive been saying for a long time that the things that are gonna ragnarock-your-world were less likely to be kooks with nukes but rather various infrastructure failures that would drop us into a third-world lifestyle similar to modern day Russia.

So..lets recap: every person with a pair of bolt cutters and a set of jumper cables now knows that you can cripple the northeast through their antiquated power system. Every nut with a shovel and a hammer now knows there are exactly two pipelines to bring gas into Arizona.

Want a few more? head over to cryptome.org sometime and see the aerial maps of the phone trunks that service the entire country..all conveniently located in one concrete building in NYC just waiting for a truck bomb. We’ve always had these vulnerabilities, its just that up to now no one has really gone out of their way to exploit them.

But you know what? Not. My. Problem.

My job is to prepare for it and come out on top of it with me and my merry band of LMI’s. Natural selection in action, kiddo.

I dont know how Im going to do it, but Im going to be about a zillion percent more self-sufficient, armored, prepped and educated by New Years 2005. That gives me about 16 months to make some serious inroads from where I am now.