by Kellene Bishop

The fact of the matter is, no law enforcement, government, or rescuer group can prepare a community. It all starts with you—the true first responders.

Just in the last 5 years alone, nearly a billion dollars has been spent throughout our nation upgrading and retrofitting buildings and structures so that previous disasters are not repeated.  And yet not a single dime is being spent on preparing the people in order to avoid defeating responses to disasters.

Case in point: Many of you may not know, or may have forgotten that the World Trade Center was attacked in 1993. All kinds of studies were done afterwards as to how to make the buildings and the perimeter safer—ten thousand pound planters placed strategically around the outside, pictures of truck drivers taken for all deliveries and bomb-sniffing dogs were employed—yet NOTHING was done to make the people safer. In spite of many fire marshals expressing grave concerns about their lack of training after the 1993 WTC attack, nothing changed in training the people. Two-thirds of the on site fire marshals didn’t even know where the stairwells were at the WTC in 1993. That statistic did not change prior to 9/11 either. In fact 45 percent of the workers at the WTC did not even know the buildings had stairwells! Many of the critical human decisions that cost lives as a result of the 1993 attack were repeated verbatim during the 9/11 attacks. Hundreds more people would have survived 9/11 had they been trained WHERE the stairwells were, how to use the connecting hallways, and to actually take an immediate response in evacuating the building instead of doing nothing.  Yes, I realize in hindsight that the thought of someone doing nothing after the first plane hit is unthinkable; but indeed, hundreds of individuals did absolutely that–nothing. Equipment and structures have been altered all over the U.S. as a result of 9/11, Hurricane Katrina, and the I-35W bridge collapsing, but there have been absolutely NO concerted efforts to educate people.

So, what can you do about this? Get yourself educated on the 10 Areas of Preparedness—particularly the first three areas, Spiritual, Mental, and Physical. I have been studying human responses to natural disasters nearly at a PhD level lately. Just in the last two weeks alone I’ve feasted on three hefty books on the subject. If I could summarize the most significant reoccurring theme in everything I’ve read, it is that human beings need to better mentally prepare for these kinds of events. (Of course there aren’t a lot of lay mans books that discuss spiritual preparedness, but that’s simply an indicator of a whole ‘nother issue.)

If the community won’t open their doors to educate you, don’t just sit there and complain—invite the community to come to you! Hold parties in your home in which you discuss what needs to be done as a group in the event of major disasters. I have frequently held “Preparedness Parties” in which I prepared yummy meals made right out of the pantry, handed out recipes, and we discuss specific preparedness topics. And yes, I’ve even created some games that help hit a point home that are entertaining, funny, and memorable.  They are evenings of fun and socializing, not gloom and doom. As such, the things discussed are more memorable and more likely to be acted upon. I once even had a Ladies Night Pampered Preparedness Party in which we played games, got paraffin wax treatments on our hands and lots of yummy food to eat.  (The house was full of women who wanted the hand treatments. Hee hee. Don’t you just love how bribery works?)

Here’s an idea for a game. Do you remember ever playing the game Pit? Well, I created a similar game. I created a bunch of cards with various supplies on them, including spiritual strength and physical strength. I also included some luxury items such as a generator, heated shower, etc.; then as the guests arrive, I had them select 10 cards blindly.  During the course of the first hour of the party they traded what they had in excess in order to try and get what they needed to be perfectly prepared.  It’s a real eye opener. So many people actually gota tad bit stressed out because they aren’t able to trade enough for food or water. And they found the generator or shower was useless without some of the more critical items. They also discovered that they’d rather not have to trade for items because they have no way of knowing what items others will have. So they’d just assume be proactive in having the item on hand initially for peace of mind.

I also did another game in which they are given a recipe which they have no doubt ever made before. And they are given only a few short minutes in which they have to create the recipe and make it edible. They are also given a pressure cooker in which they have to make the meal.  (Most folks have never used a pressure cooker before)  And lastly, they are only given a few other tools to use such as only a quarter cup measuring cup, one spoon, one fork, and a pitcher. So here they have a foreign recipe, foreign ingredients, and alien tools.   Once the timer starts, chaos ensues. Food is flying. Folks are even panicking.  It’d be quite funny if it wasn’t such a real representation of what can happen if people don’t better prepare with their tools and what they intend to eat in a survival scenario. Oh, yeah. And they learn a lot about “panicked communication.”

Push your community to offer realistic training for all community members and especially push your community leaders to TRAIN the so-called “rescuers” for major disasters. I was appalled to hear of a fireman in my community who completely dismissed a question raised by one of his students during CERT training. The student asked the question “What about during an EMP?”  The cocky fireman quipped back “That’s not a life threatening event.”  Can I just tell you that when I heard that my blood boiled?  An EMP is NOT a life-threatening event–REALLY?  Exactly how is the elimination of life lines, refrigeration, oxygen machines, surgical machines, automobiles (including emergency vehicles) classified, then??  A carnival??

Another way you can better prepare is to watch movies and read books that actively engage your mind in which you play a part in–such “what-if” scenarios. All of the successful Olympians will tell you that they run the race mentally before they run it physically.  That’s important for all of us to do in being suitable prepared. I recommend “Red Dawn”, the “Jericho” television series (you’ll have to rent it), “2012” (it gives great perspective, but very little “story”), “Twister” (in surround sound is awesome!) and “The Day After Tomorrow” for some movies to learn from.

When it comes to better preparing your community, it’s important that you understand that you can’t ride out a disaster alone. There are all kinds of logistical problems with that. Even the most brutal gangs of today know that lesson. Whether you like it or not, the community you end up in during a disaster is going to be the community you fully rely on.  Thus it does you no good to isolate yourself from them.  You’re better off trying to improve the people around you through education and interaction one step at a time.  You don’t need to start with the whole community at first. Start with your neighbors; then a larger block, etc. etc. until you’ve created a nice, strong nucleus of educated, like-minded people.  You don’t need to be the brains behind the education either. You can call on expert resources. And you don’t need to spend any money or meeting rooms and supplies.  Libraries usually offer their facilities for free and your community center sure as heck should be able to handle that as well. What you CAN do though is be the fuel behind the push for the community to get educated. So, no more excuses. Do it. And do it now.

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Copyright 2010 Preparedness Pro & Kellene Bishop.  All rights reserved.  You are welcome to repost this information so long as it is credited to www.PreparednessPro.com & Kellene Bishop

by Kellene Bishop

A great deal of my articles attempt to be a conversation between myself and those who haven’t quite got on the preparedness bandwagon.  However, today I’d like to address those of you who have begun your preparedness efforts in earnest in hopes that I might add just a bit of redirection for you (If it’s necessary, of course).

Consider your picky eaters, allergies, and recipes when filling your preparedness pantry photo c/o digitallydelicious.files.wordpress.com

I hope that those of you who are actually going through the time, effort, and expense to be more independent are not doing so only to find yourself miserable when the time comes to rely on your efforts. What I mean by that is that many of you, by your own choice—more so than by financial circumstances—have set aside items that are intended to assist you during a crisis that you already know you’re going to despise when the time comes where you’ll have to use them.  As an over-the-top example, I actually had a woman come up to me and tell me she has a year’s supply of wheat, but that she is severely allergic to wheat.  I asked her, “how long have you had your wheat?  How long have you had these allergies?”  She informed me that the wheat was about 8 years old and her allergies are about 10 years old.  I will spare you the details of the rest of that conversation. Yes, this is a bit in the extreme offense against common sense, but I use this example because for some of you it’s more appropriate than you think.

Let’s say that you have a great varied supply of food, fuel, and other essentials on hand.  Let’s look closer at them.  So, you’ve got 3 cases of Ramen noodles.  Does the thought of eating Ramen noodles make you happy?  I mean really, happy?  Or does the anticipation of having to live off of what you’ve got stored in your basement make you cringe?  How about that solar oven you have stored away that you’ve never used yet?  Does the anticipation of having to use that thing make your cringe?

Are you cringing at the thought of actually having to USE your food storage? photo c/o blog.jdubrecords.org/

Here’s my point, if you aren’t emotionally satisfied with the tools and supplies that you are intending to use when things get tough, then you are certainly not going to be your same-old competent self in the midst of turmoil.  Your mental strength is too powerful and too important to be at the mercy of some prelude shortsightedness.  If doing “just enough” to cross something off of your list doesn’t work for your emotional peace of mind today, it’s NOT going to provide you with some much needed emotional strength when things are tough.

Here’s an alternative example. Power’s out. Pipes are frozen. Eight feet of snow on the ground. No problem.  Grab the remote controlled long-life battery lamps, pull out the butane stove, make a scrumptious Thai Coconut Curry chicken in your pressure cooker with rice, have everyone settle down in front of the Lil Buddy Heater which doesn’t require any ventilation, and play a rallying game of “Shoots and Ladders.” Afterwards pull out the graham crackers and peanut butter, with a little bit of milk that your family enjoys, read a

Have an enjoyable evening with your family--even during an emergency scenario. photo c/o wonderfuloldgames.com/

bedtime story by lamplight. Make sure everyone goes to the bathroom using your biodegradable Chemsan bags rigged on your toilet, and tuck everyone in to their beds which have comfortably been made on cots and blow up mattresses. Diffuse a little bit of lavender oil to help everyone rest peacefully. Then you go and enjoy a hot eucalyptus shower with your propane heated shower in your portable “privacy hut”—positioned just outside the back door. Afterwards, you snuggle down in your flannel PJ’s and read that fictional book you’ve been hoping to get to all of this time. Enjoy the comfortable family respite.

No, I haven’t been sniffing the fairy dust.  Sure not every moment can be this great amidst a serious challenge. But it would sure stink if you didn’t even have the capability of making it that way simply because you prepared to be miserable. You need to PLAN for great moments. You need to plan for comfort food. You need to plan for happiness.  If the thought of using your preparedness supplies makes you more stressed and strung out with worry, then you are going about it all wrong. I’m telling you, the opposite is very real. You can actually look forward to such a time of challenge knowing that all will be well. Such knowledge will bring peace and comfort and sanity to you and your loved ones. You literally have a choice. Prepare to be miserable or prepare to be comfortable.

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Copyright 2010 Preparedness Pro & Kellene Bishop.  All rights reserved.  You are welcome to repost this information so long as it is credited to www.PreparednessPro.com & Kellene Bishop.

Make sure you are getting the nutrients your body needs at all times! photo c/o www.myhealthvilla.com/

Well, folks. I guess I get to be today’s object lesson in taking care of yourself with what’s on the shelf, no transportation, and no medical assistance. I managed to get sick somehow, in spite of being extra mindful of germs and such. (Although I have had this same lady coming to all of my classes and she hacks a lung all during the class! Ugh)  Anyway, no article for you today. I’ll be using my planned “quarantine care” of 1,000 mg. of chewable Vitamin C, , 20,000 IU’s of Vitamin D3,–as per many studies I’ve read–diffusing Thieves essential oil in my room (Old fashioned candle version), spraying Thieves under my tongue, mixing up some nutritional Reliv drinks, and drinking plenty of filtered water. A hot shower and a box of Mrs. Grass Chicken Noodle Soup sounds pretty good right now too.  So, we’ll see if home health care can kick a fever, chills,  and persistent dry coughing through diligent homeopathic remedies.

Hope you all have a great weekend!

Copyright 2010 Preparedness Pro & Kellene Bishop.  All rights reserved.  You are welcome to repost this information so long as it is credited to www.PreparednessPro.com & Kellene Bishop.

By Guest Author, Ted Blanchard

Honda Generator photo c/o hayesequipment.com

I confess. A generator is not one of my chosen tools for preparedness. But then again, I tend to prepare more for a serious survival scenario i.e.: a widespread national crisis, in which case I feel that a generator is useless and simply paints you as a target of the morally deficit and desperate individuals. However, in the event of  a more temporary power outage scenario due to a hurricane, snow storm or such, a generator would certainly be a worthwhile tool to have. As such, I have solicited the assistance of Ted Blanchard, last week’s guest author to provide for us a 3 part series on understanding, protecting, and utilizing a generator. So here is part 1.

Power and Sizing of a Generator

Power and Sizing

We’ll start with an easy topic.  Power is the ability to do work, plain and simple.  It can be measured in horsepower (HP), watts (W) and a variety of other units.  For the moment, we will focus on horsepower and watts.  Electrical power (in watts) is the voltage times the current or 1Watt = 1Volt x 1Amp. In most houses a 75-watt bulb consumes about 0.625 amps, because US homes are almost all 120 volts AC (alternating current).  75W/120V = 0.625 amps of current passing through the bulb’s filament. You can think of voltage as electrical “pressure” and current as electrical “volume” if you need to wrap your mind around the details.  Higher voltage “pushes” harder through any electrical load, including you if you are not careful, and higher current means more “juice” delivered to the hair dryer or overhead lights. For convenience in comparing generators, we can also use kilowatts or kW, which is simply one thousand watts. If you want all the details click on watts, but for our purposes, one horsepower is a bit less than 750 Watts, or 0.75 kW of electrical power.  For this reason, you can dismiss as falsehood any claims by a manufacturer that their 8 HP generator provides 10 kW of electrical power.  A system’s Efficiency Factor – a number between 0 and 1, and often expressed as a percentage from 0% to 100% – is a measure of the efficiency of the system.  A generator with an efficiency factor of 0.8 (or 80%) converts eight tenths of the power developed by the engine into available electrical power, on a continuous basis, to run lights, heaters, appliances and other household items.  The rest is lost through engine heat, radiated sound and radio frequency (RF) energy and other “inefficiencies” of the generator.  As a result, a fair “rule of thumb” is that a generator can be expected to provide roughly 600 to 700 watts of electrical power per engine horsepower, with 700 being an extremely efficient generator, bordering on impossible.  So we have already arrived at Warning One: check the math in the advertisement and if they are claiming an electrical power level that the specified engine simply cannot produce, ignore the nice low price and look elsewhere.  As an example, I saw an ad for a generator allegedly rated at 8 kW continuous and 10kW peak, driven by a 9 HP engine.  Simple math tells me that 9 HP x 0.7 kW per HP –>6.3kW absolute maximum available continuous power.  “Peak power” is the rating that tells how much power the generator can provide very briefly during the first few milliseconds that a load such as a large motor or compressor needs to start up.  Examples might be found in your freezer or a furnace blower.  If they normally consume 1000 watts, they may actually require 1500 or more watts while they start from zero and approach their normal operating state. Such power levels can be attained briefly because of inertia in the generator’s engine and the generators ability to handle loads above the normal rating for a short period until the peak load brings the generator/engine system speed below normal – at which point you have a “brownout” for all loads connected to the generator.  If the spin up time is short enough, you probably won’t even notice the disruption.  This dual rating is why you often see generators listed with two numbers, such as 5kW/6kW.  Those are the continuous and peak power ratings.  Be wary of sellers who list a single number.  They may be indicating the peak power and hoping you think it’s the continuous power available.

What size generator do you need?  This can be determined in a couple ways.  The hard way is to add up the watts used by all your home devices and figuring out some sort of nominal percentage that represents the amount that may be on at a given high-usage time.  A much simpler way is to take your electrical power bill, divide the number of kilo-watt hours (kWH or KWH) consumed in a month by 720 (the number of hours in a 30 day month) and apply a “loading” factor of anywhere between 3 and 7 which takes into account the fact that there is not much electrical demand during the night and so a straight average will give you a much lower number than what you require during active periods.  Using a loading factor of 3 would require you to very carefully manage the household’s electrical consumption to avoid loading down your generator, but it can be done.  A loading factor of 7 (or higher if so inclined and if you have the finances to allow it) lets you to pretty much live as usual without fear of placing too large a load on your generator. Here’s an example from my own bill last month. I used 1060 KWH of power over the 30-day span.  A straight average would say that I consumed 1.47 kW continuously, but if I relied on a 1.5 kW generator to meet my needs, I would be terribly disappointed, to say the least.  In reality, I use a 10kW/12.5kW diesel fueled military surplus generator to power my home when our utility provider is down, for whatever reason.   I don’t have to “ration” my usage and my generator hums along happily, never missing a beat.  Could I get by with a 7.5kW generator?  Sure, and I did so for 3 years, but switched over to the current arrangement for reasons explained in later paragraphs.

Most generators use fuel at a rate that follows the power loading, so if you get a 10kW generator but have household electrical items operating that only consume a total of 3kW it will get much better “mileage” than if you put a full 10kW load on it.  Again, the fuel consumption is not linear with load, so try asking sellers what the consumption is at 100%, 75% and 50% loads.  Be wary if they give numbers that too closely match 100%, 75% and 50% of the max fuel consumption.  It should not be an exactly linear relationship due to the “inefficiencies” described earlier, which are near constant regardless of the power load.

Now, briefly venturing into the technical realm again, we must consider the frequency of the power generated.  North American homes run on 60-cycle or 60 Hz power.  Many European homes run on 50 Hz.  Ours is convenient because there are 60 seconds in a minute, and 60 minutes in an hour.  Analog clocks (those are the ones with the moving hour, minute and second hands for those who have forgotten) maintain their accuracy because the power coming into your home is 60 Hz.  The motor simply runs at a multiple of the power frequency and as a result your analog clock is as accurate as the control circuitry at the power generation plant that provides your power.  As a kid, we marveled at how the “new” digital clocks always seemed to need adjustment, but the old sweep hand clock in the kitchen stayed right on the money for years, unless the power was interrupted. Digital clocks mostly use internal oscillators as the basis for their time standard and often that oscillator is ever so slightly fast or slow compared to a true 60 Hz.

Any generator worth owning has an engine that runs at a multiple of 60 Hz, but we call it revolutions per minute (RPM) since the crankshaft is spinning in a circle.  Most of the very good backup generators run at 1800 RPM, which is just our clocks’ favorite frequency multiplied by 30.  It’s fairly easy to “divide down” and have the output power delivered at a constant 60 Hz.  Some generators run at 3600 RPM, which is 60 times our reference frequency. There is nothing at all wrong with that, but consider the following: an engine’s noise level is usually related to the RPMs.  Rev your car and it gets louder.  Also, each revolution of your engine results in a tiny amount of operational wear on the moving parts.  Not surprisingly, an engine designed to operate at 1800 RPM will generally last longer than one designed to run at 3600 RPM.  The life span is not necessarily linear, however, meaning that an engine running at half the speed does not last exactly twice as long.  In diesel engines, for instance, a designed operational speed of 1800 RPM usually means a lifespan that is 5 to 20 times greater than one designed to run at 3600 RPM.  The slower engine also usually runs quieter, though for higher speed engines sound attenuating materials can be used, usually at additional cost.  At the risk of getting ahead of myself, diesel generator engines built by high quality manufacturers (such as Onan, Detroit Diesel, Caterpillar, and Cummins) which are designed to run at 1800 RPM will generally give you upwards of 20,000 hours of run time before requiring major repair or overhaul. That’s well over 2 years of non-stop use. Gasoline or diesel engines from inexpensive sources (mostly Chinese firms) and built to run at 3600 RPM typically give between 1,000 and 1,500 hours of service before some significant amount of repair or overhaul work is required. So we have reached WARNING TWO: don’t go cheap on something that may save your bacon down the road.  Saving a few hundred dollars now could make for some very uncomfortable days and nights if we should ever have grid power issues spanning many weeks or even months.  For a little light reading on that look up EMP and ponder for a while, the likely results of such an event.  And as an aside, those cheap Chinese generators (gasoline or diesel) have lots of poor quality electronics that are very vulnerable to an EMP.  Expensive electronics can be fried too, but they might at least have a decent protective housing that helps to shunt pulse energy to ground.

To be continued…

Copyright 2009 Kellene Bishop. All rights reserved.  You are welcome to repost this information so long as it is credited to Kellene Bishop.

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By Kellene Bishop

While I was teaching classes in Vegas this weekend, I had a gal come up to me and share some of her personal stories. One of which was about her daughter who lives in “tornado territory.” The woman shared with me that she was happy her daughter had finally started being mindful about being better prepared. She says that her daughter realized how often they hear tornado warnings and decided to “get on the stick.” The thought that came to my mind after hearing her story was how we ALL have tornado warnings going off all of the time. It’s my hope that we’ll learn to pay attention to them. Keep in mind that a tornado warning isn’t an indicator of death and destruction. It is a warning that now is the time for you to put your preparedness into practice. Thus the fact that we’re hearing the tornado warnings all around us in virtually every aspect of our environment, we are essentially being provided with “dress rehearsals” to help us be ready for the “live performance.” 

Throughout the weekend I was also surprised to have been asked by several people “how much longer” I thought we really had. Let’s be clear, I am not a prophet. I have no more access to information regarding what’s taking place on our world stage than you do. We all have access to the scriptures. The real question is, are we paying attention to all of the indicators that we have available to us? Here are the tornado warnings I see looming in the wings at present.

Unemployment photo c/o homelessness.change.org

Unemployment rate has finally been admitted by the Obama administration to be over 10%. In actuality it’s over 22%.  But hey, at least they were willing to admit their dreaded number of over 10%. Just to give you a frame of reference, unemployment was at 33% during the Great Depression during which time the standard of living was less, the dollar was worth more, etc.

Our nation is at the most horrific sized national deficit than all of our history put together.

Our enemies are becoming more bold in their hatred of us.

Our U.S. Constitution barely remains intact.

I expect there to be a great war between Iraq and Israel by the end of the year.

We have an unprecedented excess of money in circulation with no accounting thereof, and no gold or silver to back it up. It’s all just paper.

We are being primed for a medical challenge. Whether it be a factual pandemic, or a contrived one, it will still have a serious effect if any portion of our population is put under a quarantine order.

We are looking at a genuine food shortage throughout the world. The bumper crop that USDA predicted this year will NOT happening, thus not only will our own flour, soy, corn, and sugar goods rise in price dramatically, but the United States will be unable to aid foreign nations since our own surplus supplies have been exhausted.

The work ethic of the young generation is seriously compromised today. This means that there is a lack of innovation, problem solving, and initiative which is critical to aiding in any in long term financial or political problems.

The value of our dollar has dropped sharply, by 50%, just in the last week.

Fort Hood Shooting Memorial photo c/o nydailynews.com

A terrorist act has recently been carried out on our own soil against our servicemen, indicating that we are sorely unaware of the hatred and conspiracies which lurk among us.

Take all these tornado warnings along with the scriptures that will be fulfilled quite literally, and you can decide for yourself whether or not you think you’re going to get many more “dress rehearsals.”

Now, clearly I could go on, but sharing with you the gloom and doom of the day is not my goal. My point is that none of this is news to any of you. And yet it should all act as tornado warnings to all of us. We’d be foolish to wait until we actually saw the tornado itself prior to being better prepared, when the smell is clearly in the air that something is amiss.

May we be aware and be prepared that this country—in all of its greatness—may continue to be carried on the backs of solid, sound, and resolved citizens. Remember that only a prepared and sober people can accomplish such a task.

Copyright 2009 Preparedness Pro & Kellene Bishop.  All rights reserved.  You are welcome to repost this information so long as it is credited to Preparedness Pro & Kellene Bishop.

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By Kellene Bishop

It’s a critical consideration for any person who intends to be prepared for whatever comes their way and yet it seems too taboo to discuss.

It will assuredly save your life or that of your family, and yet many shrug it off.

In the name of goodness many folks ignore it. Yet true goodness is willing to battle evil.

It’s the difference between being prepared and being able to access your preparedness supplies. So why is it dismissed and vilified?

Self-Defense is the 3rd most critical component of preparedness (as it falls under the Physical Preparedness category), and yet it’s treated by many as the elephant in the middle of the room. We dance around it. We whisper about it. Our discomfort excuses ourselves from a conversation relating to it. Very few are willing to embrace that elephant as an asset instead of as an unwelcome guest.

Make no mistake about it. I’m not keen on taking someone’s life. However, I am more committed to protecting my life and those that I love than I am against taking someone’s life. Make no mistake about it. If my life, liberty, or virtue is threatened I will fight back decisively and in a very final manner. I’m under tall, over weight, and out of shape. I have no misconceptions that I will be able to handle a drug-crazed violent attacker with a karate chop to the groin, a “dancing flight of the beetle” move, or my sheer will. While I’m proficient at street fighting self-defense, that’s only for “just in case” when I may not be armed with my ultimate equalizer—a firearm.

Yes, firearms are dangerous—to an attacker. Yes, accidents to happen with firearms—by those who refuse to follow the rules of safety. But they are indeed the self-defense of choice in my home because they provide a critical element of surprise, an effective defense when distance is preferred, and an element of strength that I simply cannot create even with a daily 3 hour workout regime. In the name of preparedness and acknowledging the darker side of some human nature, I’ve gone from being “no way is a gun going to be in my home” to being a proficient firearms marksmen instructor, Utah Concealed Weapons Permit instructor, and the NRA’s highest certified female instructor in the Western States. Yup. That path didn’t come overnight. But it wouldn’t have come at all if I hadn’t acknowledged that elephant in the middle of the room.

Just as an example, let’s take the scenario of a mandatory quarantine. So, everyone is supposed to stay in their homes and not venture out, right? Does that mean your streets will be quiet? Does that mean that EVERYONE is going to respect the quarantine order? How about the individuals who are woefully addicted to pain medication? The pharmacies will be cleaned out after only 24 hours. So, no way for the addicts to get their prescriptions filled. No pharmacies to rob. Even if, for some reason, all of the drug dealers are able to avoid getting sick, where are the addicts going to get their supply? It will run out eventually, right? So their only hope is to rob a home in hopes that someone has some pain medications on hand. So, he chooses your house. What are your plans? To just give him the pills? To reason with him and convince him to enter rehab? Remember, you’re not dealing with a sane person. You’re not dealing with a person who has boundaries. In fact, by all intents and purposes, you’re not dealing with a person. You’re dealing with an addiction that’s clearly out of control. Do you really plan on risking everything you’ve done to protect and preserve your family for a time of crisis just to appease one drug-crazed addict? So you simply give him what he wants perhaps. If you think it’s this easy to decide and this cut and dry, I think you’ve been watching too many movies.

Photo c/o diabetes.org

Let’s forget the drug addicts for a moment. Let’s consider a scenario that perhaps more of us can relate to. Suppose you have a 5-year-old daughter who has a serious form of diabetes. Your supply of insulin has run out. What do you do? Do you try to get more from the pharmacy as soon as you hear of a possible quarantine? Sorry, but you will be sharing that thought with hundreds of other concerned, desperate parents. Your success is not likely. So then what happens? Do you become desperate like a drug-addicted criminal? It’s possible. And I think that we don’t fully appreciate just how desperate folks can become in the name of taking care of their family—especially their children.

The obstacle for many people when they think of having to defend themselves against a crazed attack of another is they emotionally view that attacker as a human being. Unfortunately though, a person who would physically harm, maim, violate, or kill another person to get gain is NOT a human being any longer. They have instead taken on the characteristics of a wild animal. When it comes to defending yourself, you must not view the assailant as a human being. If you want to stay alive and safe, you must view an attacker as the sub-human that they have become.

This kind of a mindset does not happen overnight. You must mentally prepare yourself for what you will do, under what circumstances you will do it, what tools you need, what skills you need, and what safety procedures you will implement in order to ensure your safety in any scenario…but particularly in one which will foster looting, plunder, and violation of independence, virtue, and safety. Then you must physically prepare yourself with the SKILL and physical muscle training to put your plan into place. Remember, no one defends themselves with a firearm successfully without having mentally rehearsed it first.

In closing, I just want to point out the obvious. Your Jason Bourne moves are only powerful in your dreams. You should be armed with a serviceable firearm as well as a decent supply of ammo. This will effectively defend you at a distance in spite of the strength and rage of an assailant. This will also give you a fighting chance against multiple assailants. My rule of thumb is that you have 1,000 rounds of ammo per caliber of firearm. Anyone who’s capable and mature enough to handle a firearm in your home should be trained to do so. While this may sound like a apocalyptic scenario, the fact of the matter is you don’t truly know how long a survival situation may last, how much hunting you may have to do for food, nor what kind of security your community may require when lawlessness steps in. Once a true emergency hits your community, your civilized way of thinking and living will be altered dramatically.

Ultimately you need to be prepared for the worst, and pray for the best.

Copyright 2009 Preparedness Pro & Kellene Bishop.  All rights reserved.  You are welcome to repost this information so long as it is credited to Preparedness Pro & Kellene Bishop.

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By Kellene Bishop

There’s a lot involved in answering that question. If you’re in the Utah County area you can attend the Preparedness Pro class by the same name. Sept. 8 at the Pleasant Grove Macy’s at 7 p.m. or Sept. 9 at the Orem Macy’s. Tell your friends! See you there! 

(Don’t worry out of town folks. We’ll be holding a webinar on this topic soon!)

Copyright 2009 Preparedness Pro & Kellene Bishop.  All rights reserved.  You are welcome to repost this information so long as it is credited to Preparedness Pro & Kellene Bishop.

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By Kellene Bishop

Pandemic or not, the time to prepare is now. Photo c/o ehow.com/

A lot of folks are e-mailing me or commenting that they don’t buy into all of this “hoopla” about the Swine Flu. My response is that it doesn’t matter whether or not the Swine flu amounts to anything at this moment, you STILL need to prepare for it. The point is that you should be preparing for the Swine Flu, Avian Flu, or Alien flu (yes, I made that up) the same way that you prepare for any other “disaster.” The only significance of the Swine Flu is the matter of timing. Due to the flu season and school starting back up, we MAY be looking at an imminent pandemic threat very soon. The fact of the matter is, you all still have a lot to do to get prepared to survive without all of your niceties that you’re used to. Just because the Swine Flu flurry may be perpetuated unnecessarily doesn’t make it any less of a circumstance to reckon ourselves with. I think that the issue with the Swine Flu being so pervasive in our minds is simply that it’s something that’s a bit more real to us. The timing of it is more visible. No one (who’s willing to admit it anyway) saw 9/11 coming. No one saw the damage that the tsunami was going to bring with it, and no one saw the complete disaster and horrible aftermath that Hurricane Katrina let loose on Louisiana either. Ask yourself, if you had a major earthquake tomorrow, would you be prepared? If your children all came down with some nasty flu and you were quarantined, would you be prepared?

Whether or not the Swine Flu ends up being equivalent to the Spanish Flu of 1918 is irrelevant. Yes, the Spanish Flu killed hundreds of millions of people. Yes, it affected virtually every part of the earth, even the Arctic and remote islands of the Pacific. But its biggest danger was that it came to people who were unaware, unlearned, and unprepared for such an instance. Thus what’s truly important is that you prepare for a pandemic situation like it right now while you can.

Here is a list of items for you that I recommend you have on hand in case you do end up having a patient who’s ill with a highly contagious flu virus. You will want to cordon off a room in your home for the care of such a person in order to avoid the unnecessary spreading of the virus. This list takes into consideration that you may or may not have electricity. (Obviously, this list is not all inclusive)

Items to Cordon Off a Sick Room

• Air filter                     
• Fan                                         
• Plastic sheeting
• Shower Curtain        
• Sheets/pillow cases               
• Heavy blankets          
• Cot/bed                      
• Bleach                                    
• Rubber gloves            
• Air masks                   
• Hair ties                                 
• Shower caps              
• Thermometers           
• Multiple sets of sheets                       
• Ways to keep sick room dark           
• Washcloths                
• Portable water bins               
• Capacity to heat water w/o electricity
• Towels (paper and cloth)

Items Necessary for the Comfort of Patient

• Fabric for bandages (sanitize) 
• Baby wipes
• Anti-diarrhea meds
• Anbesol                                      
• Listerine
• Chloraseptic
• Whiskey
• Honey
• Lemon juice
• Water, water, water
• Salt
• Multi-vitamins
• Herbal teas
• Essential oils
• Lotions
• Washcloths
•  Towels
• Multiple sets of sheets
  

  Thieves Oil photo c/o aromatherapyliving.com

• Air flow
• Visine
• Hot packs
• Cold packs 
• Lavender
• Garlic/garlic oil
• Thieves Oil/products
• Lanacane
• Pain/fever relievers*
• Vaporizers (battery operated)
• Oversized T-shirts 
• Gowns
• Vicks Vaporub
• Icy Hot
• SOFT facial tissues
• SOFT toilet paper
• Gauze            
• Medical tape
• Neosporin                           
• Hot water bottle
• Straws
• Allergy meds                          
• Ensure               
• Band-aids
• Q-tips                         
• Cotton balls 
• Meal-in-bed tray
• Eye dropper               
• Mouth dropper
• Books
• Juice                        
• Baby monitor
• Pen/notebook for records
• Anti-bacterial soap    
• Olive leaf extract
• Yarrow root
• Goldenseal                 

• 

  Hot Toddy

  Red sage

• Raspberry leaves
• Catnip                                  
• Oregano oil
• Sage oil
• Bragg’s Amino acids                         
• Scar therapy pads      
• Hemorrhoid ointment
• Baby bottle                                        
• Rubbing alcohol        
• Bed pans
• Deodorizer                                         
• Walker                                   
• Sleep aids          
• Crackers                     
• Cough medicine* (or makings for a hot toddy: 1 T of whiskey, 1 T honey, 1 T lemon, 1 C. of hot water)
• Pain relievers (aspirin, acetaminophen, ibuprofen)*                     
• Simple proteins (peanut butter, canned chicken)
• Pedialyte ( Recipe: 1 liter H2O, 2 T sugar or honey, 1/4 t salt, 1/4 t baking soda)
• Hot cereals (cream of wheat and oatmeal are best on the stomach)
• Anti-Nausea treatment (crystallized ginger, chamomile, mint tea, crackers)

*Remember infant versions too

Copyright 2009 Preparedness Pro & Kellene Bishop.  All rights reserved.  You are welcome to repost this information so long as it is credited to Preparedness Pro & Kellene Bishop.

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By Kellene Bishop

Tap Water photo c/o scienceblogs.com

Water Storage Myth: Treat your water and then store it.
Water Storage Fact: Actually, if you use regular tap water, it’s already treated. There’s no need to add any additional chemicals to it when it’s just going to be sitting in a container. If your water needs treatment, do so at the point of using it, not prior to storing it.

Water Storage Myth: Don’t store your water barrels on cement.
Water Storage Fact: Actually, there’s always a missing component to this myth. The key is not to store your water barrels on HEATED cement, and even that’s questionable advice. To store your water in your basement on the cement floor is just fine. There’s no need to make your barrels less stable by putting them on 2 x 4s. Cement only leaches chemicals when it gets hot. If you’re going to store your water in your garage, where the sun heats up the connecting driveway cement, then yes, I’d consider raising your barrels up on floor boards or such.

Water Storage Myth: Stored water tastes bad.
Water Storage Fact: Stored water is merely lacking oxygen. You can get it back to tasting great simply by pouring it back and forth a couple of times between a couple of pitchers, or glasses. This will infuse oxygen back into your water. 

Photo c/o flickr.com

Water Storage Myth: I’ve got a pool out back for our water storage, so I don’t need to store any otherwise.
Water Storage Fact: One who has this opinion is taking a big risk, one which I would not venture to take. It’s presuming that no animal waste, nuclear waste, or other biological poisoning will enter the pool water. Also, if there is a water shortage in your area, and your big pool is out there for all of the desperate folks to see, you’re simply begging for some dangerous self-defense scenarios. You might as well leave your car doors unlocked with your wallet on the front seat. In the event of a real emergency, I would ALWAYS recommend that families store water as well as presuming that their pool water supply will be available, thus preventing it from outdoor contaminates and ensuring that you have water to survive in the event of all possible scenarios.

Water Storage Myth: I have iodine tablets and I know where the river is.
Water Storage Fact: You and everybody else. Just how long do you think that river supply is going to be available to you and your family? How useful will that river supply be to you in the event of a flood? Iodine tables don’t do too well with cleaning out home and body parts. How much vital physical energy will it take you to fetch enough water for you and your family to survive long term? People who have this attitude sure are taking a huge gamble. Remember that conserving your own physical energy should be your first priority in an emergency. So purposefully putting yourself in a situation in which you need to work hard for water is short-sighted. Also, you’re assuming that your iodine tablets will take care of whatever is in the outdoor water, regardless of what it’s been exposed to. (See previous myth/fact example) If you have water stored in quality containers in your home, you can save your physical energy for other more important tasks, and you will ensure that your water supply is protected and is YOURS. Not only that, but chemical treatment of water is not the safest.  Heating your water, such as boiling it, is by far the safest method of treating your water.

You’re also assuming that you won’t be quarantined and that the streets will be safe to travel.

Photo c/o alwaysupward.com

Water Storage Myth: Boil your water for 10 minutes in order for it to be safe.
Water Storage Fact: Actually, you do not need to boil your water. Boiling the water is actually a waste of precious fuel. Water boils at 212 degrees. However, getting your water to a heat of 160 degrees for 30 minutes will kill all pathogens, and 185 degrees at for only 3 minutes. This is true even at a high altitude. (Note that my preferred way of heating water is in a solar oven. No fuel waste!)

Water Storage Myth: You only need 2 weeks worth of water for your family.
Water Storage Fact: Two weeks is only enough to get you from one point to another. Long-term survival will require a year’s supply of water. The magnitude of a disaster which would create a long-term water shortage, would also require 3.5 years of repairs in order for you to have the kind of water access you are accustomed to now. So really, a one year supply of water is still a minimalistic “get-us-through-until-we-can-find-a-good-well-or-other-water-supply” kind of storage. And besides, if you’re not storing a year’s supply of water, no one else is. So now let’s compound your problem exponentially in your community and discover just how fast the “native get restless.”

Water Storage Myth: I don’t need to drink a gallon of water a day!
Water Storage Fact: The recommend amount of one gallon per person, per day is not just for drinking. It’s for bathing, (as hygiene is critical), sanitation (you gotta manually flush your stuff in an emergency, folks), medical (some instances require more drinking water than others), cooking, and cleaning. Next time you think one gallon of water a day sounds like a lot, measure how much water you put in the pot when you boil water, wash your dishes, or wash your clothes. It’s a LOT more than you think!

Also, your kidneys process the equivalent of 400-500 gallons of water per DAY! If you don’t feed your body new water, then the old water ends up looking like nasty oil in a car that hasn’t been changed in 10,000 miles. When times are tough, you don’t want to try and use that kidney of yours as a commercial slime filter, do you?

Water Storage Myth: Food is more important than water.
Water Storage Fact: Nope. You can go several days without food. You cannot live without water for longer than ONE day without seriously beginning to tax your body. It only goes downhill from there. Without water, your muscles lose their elasticity, your organs shut down, and your senses are dulled. None of these are situations you want to occur during an emergency.

Water Storage Myth: I don’t need water. I’ve got a year’s supply of Gatorade.
Water Storage Fact: Liquid intake is not the same as water intake. The moment you add ANYTHING to your water, your body no longer takes it in as water. It has to process it, filter it, and THEN use what water is left in the liquid before it benefits from it. If your body has to work hard to process the liquids it takes in, it’s using more vital energy. In a perfect world, your water drink for refreshment would consist of distilled water, as that’s what you body can use the most readily.

Don't Store Water in Milk Jugs! photo c/o chartertn.net

Water Storage Myth: I’ve got 2-liter bottles, old milk jugs, and juice bottles full of water. I’m set.
Water Storage Fact: Ok. This is better than nothing. But if it’s water than you intend on saving your life, I would definitely consider more sturdy and durable containers. In my opinion, even the water that is sold in the stores is insufficiently packaged for long-term storage in most cases. The plastic is too vulnerable for rugged use and access. I also don’t advise storing drinking water in used containers. And whatever you do, stop storing water in the old milk jugs. Those are the WORST in terms of chemical leaking and plastic breakdown.

Water Storage Myth: I’ve got ten 55 gallon drums full of water. I’m set.
Water Storage Fact: It’s great that you’ve got that much water. However, consider also having some water that’s more portable as well. It will make your life physically easier in surviving a long-term emergency situation. And by all means, make sure you’ve got the hardware necessary to get your water out of those big drums such as a hand pump, wrench, etc.

Copyright 2009 Preparedness Pro & Kellene Bishop.  All rights reserved.  You are welcome to repost this information so long as it is credited to Preparedness Pro & Kellene Bishop.

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By Kellene Bishop

Swine Flu Vaccination photo c/o swineflutips.com

I’m sure I won’t earn any popularity points with this post today. But I do get asked my opinion on this issue regularly. So I’m going to post my OPINION on it today. Mind you, I will share with you why I have such an opinion, but obviously this is a decision that you’ll need to make for yourself.

1)     Why I Won’t Be Taking the Swine Flu Vaccination Reason #1: Dangerous Side Effects. In a study in Britain, over half of all children who have had Tamiflu have had side effects to it.  (The current vaccination that’s being developed is based in part on Tamiflu.) Additionally, doctors STILL do not know why the vaccinations given in 1976 caused paralysis. Also, since the flu of 1918, the vaccination has killed more people than the disease itself. Um…I’m thinking I don’t like those odds. 

2)     Why I Won’t Be Taking the Swine Flu Vaccination Reason #2: Improper Testing. Since the 1980’s, vaccine manufacturers have been made legally immune to lawsuits in the event that their vaccine harms children. However, recently our U.S. administration has given blanket legal immunity to the manufacturers for the H1N1 vaccine. In other words, the manufacturers will simply make a whole lot of money with no motivation to actually test and make sure that their vaccine is safe. Given the history of the side effects of vaccines in the past, I’m also not liking those odds, folks.

3)     Why I Won’t Be Taking the Swine Flu Vaccination Reason #3: Illegal and Immoral. There have been rumors that the vaccination may become mandatory. When WHO made their Pandemic Declaration in June, they stated that all children under the age of 6 were to be immunized. Um, not only NO, but &%$# NO. Our laws prevent such actions. Additionally a government even conceiving of such a plan, is completely immoral. If women can decide whether or not to abort a baby, I sure as heck can decide for myself whether to put a foreign substance in me that is created by individuals who have no legal compunction to ensure its safety.

Photo c/o nworeport.com

4)     Why I Won’t Be Taking the Swine Flu Vaccination Reason #4: Known Dangerous Components. The base of the H1N1 vaccination is Thimerosal. This is a mercury base and is known to be a neurotoxin. It also contains Aluminum adjuvant: an aluminum-containing compound. This releases the antigen causing strong, enhanced antibody response. However, this component has specifically been linked to Gulf War Syndrome that has caused tremendous permanent damage to thousands of military. Aluminum is a known cause of cognitive dysfunction. It also contains Disodium phosphate: a white powder, water-soluble salt. It is used as an anti-caking additive in powdered products. This inorganic chemical is also used as a fungicide and microbiocide. Let’s also add a little bit of Formaldehyde—you know, that substance that you’re embalmed with when you’re dead. It’s also a known carcinogen and reproductive or developmental toxicant. According to PANNA, in 2007, California used 30,328 pounds of this carcinogen, as a microbiocide (a drug or other agent that can kill microbes) on the top 50 crops grown in the state.  And let’s also add a dash of Octoxynol 10: (Also known as Triton X-100) a detergent, emulsifier, wetting and defoaming agent. (Octoxynol-9 is a spermatocide.) It can alter metabolic activity, damage membranes, and cause a rapid decline in cell function.

Lastly, let’s sprinkle in a little Polysorbate 80, also known as “Tween 80.” It is used as an emulsifier in cosmetics, and is one of the ingredients in Gardasil, the cervical cancer vaccine that is being mandated/promoted for teenage girls. This ingredient is known to cause infertility, grand mal convulsions, spontaneous abortions, and life-threatening anaphylactic shock. So far, 28 Gardasil deaths have been reported.

 Thanks, but no thanks. I like my medical cocktails a little more refreshing. 

A good read on this topic is the following medical report: http://www.rense.com/general86/dngers.htm

5)     Why I Won’t Be Taking the Swine Flu Vaccination Reason #5: Too Much Speculation Involved—Not Science. Let’s face it. You can’t predict the future, folks. The planned H1N1 vaccination has not even been finished yet, let alone tested. I’m not about to be a guinea pig. I’ll do what I am already comfortable and knowledgeable about in order to ensure my health. This H1N1 strain has shown that it’s still evolving and resistant to vaccinations. We’re not even in the peak flu season as of yet. So who knows what the flu strain will evolve to by mid-October when the vaccination is expected to be available? Presently they are creating the vaccination based on the “1918 Spanish flu.” As you know, vaccinations have a portion of the flu strain in them in hopes that your body builds up an immunity to it. Ummm…I’m sorry. But I’m not interested in putting even a small portion of the most deadly flu outbreak ever into my body—especially one that has been festering in laboratories for over a hundred years.

Photo c/o magickdragonfly.com

6)     Why I Won’t Be Taking the Swine Flu Vaccination Reason #6: Suspicious. There have been a lot of rumors circulating about whether or not this virus was purposely released, etc.—after all, we’ve stored samples of all of the known outbreaks, and a whole lot of our own making. I’m not going to give any of that credence at this juncture. However, I do find it suspicious that the drug companies have been indemnified by the government for any potential physical harm the vaccines may cause—why would they do that if they were safe? And it’s very suspicious that one of the largest drug companies, Baxter, filed a patent for the H1N1 an entire year BEFORE the virus manifested itself. They also admitted sending contaminated flu viruses to subcontractors. And let’s not forget that it was Baxter that distributed tainted vaccine for the avian flu!  Hmmm…setting a stage? I’m thinking that they can make their bazillions on someone else’s body, not mine. And what’s with this “requirement” to the media to no longer calling it “the swine flu?” Instead we are going to call it the “H1N1 virus.” That’s like putting lipstick on a pig, in my opinion. (Excuse the pun)

7)     Why I Won’t Be Taking the Swine Flu Vaccination Reason #7: Mathematics. On a lighter note, I figure that if the vaccine does work as well as it was supposed to, then all I really have to do is encourage people around me who I don’t like to get vaccinated. And that should be sufficient. :) Just kidding 

So, there is obviously a decision to be made here. But I think I’ve clearly shared with you the main reasons why I will NOT be getting the H1N1 vaccine. I trust alternative health methods and my faith a heck of a lot more than what my current medical options are out there. Perhaps you should make it a matter of a prayerful decision for yourself and your family—or at least a well researched one.

Copyright 2009 Preparedness Pro & Kellene Bishop.  All rights reserved.  You are welcome to repost this information so long as it is credited to Preparedness Pro & Kellene Bishop.

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