Gaining Credibility and Staying Hydrated

The CDC has determined that the ZA may actually occur.  I don’t liken the CDC to the other GOONS, as the CDC actually seems to have its act together and actually helps people, so, in my book, the CDC is exempt from GOONS status.  I like their preparedness statements, but I think that truly, it doesn’t go far enough for preparation.

S.D. and I were discussing what we have, what we need, what is in the pipeline and what our plan will evolve into.  One of the things most immediately is the need for potable water.  As water is a fairly good heat sink, we will likely have water stored in the root cellar, so to ameliorate temperature fluctuations through the seasons.  As the ZA may happen before we get the cistern in, so we will have to take smaller steps prior to it happening.

Your water needs, per person, for consumption only varies between a half and a whole gallon.  As medical services will become scarce, avoiding dehydration at all costs will be paramount.  While the CDC assigns 1 gallon per person per day, that is for all cooking and drinking needs, I will encourage all to have 1 gallon per person per day for drinking only, and extra for cooking and extranea.

As bleach does go bad after six months or so, some people have turned to swimming pool bleach in powder form, which is used in minute amounts to purify long-term stored water.  The formula is basically: one heaping teaspoon of Ca(ClO)2of 78% (granular calcium hypochlorite) for 2 gallons of water.  This is your disinfecting solution (you’ve just made household bleach of sorts).  To then disinfect your drinking water, use one part of the solution you just made to 100 parts water to be treated.  Let the solution rest for at least a half hour before drinking it to let anything solid precipitate out.

The dry granular form of Ca(ClO)2 as in dry form in a sealed container, it will stay good rather indefinitely.  Once mixed into solution, it will degrade quickly (I estimate faster than household bleach), perhaps within a matter of weeks as opposed to months.  Only treat as much water as you would use for a couple weeks at a time.

While the gold standard of water purification is to heat it to 145 degrees for 6-10 minutes, after the ZA, fuel will very likely be in short supply and using it to purify water (instead of cooking pathogens out of what might be questionable food if you have to forage) could be addressed as wasteful.

Keep your health, stay hydrated!  Fight the zombie horde by outsurviving them!

is it going to trip you when the zombies come?

we are in the season of little things and emergence of the new.  If your tank is empty, refill it in the garden, where things are coming up, getting leaves, and becoming what they were meant to become all along.  It's also time to assess what to keep and what to dismiss.

 

Assess what you have, and look at what you need, does what you have further your gain, does it help you get by day to day, or is it just taking up space?  Is it somethong you are hanging on to because someone will make you feel guilty if you send it on its way?  Most importantly, will it help you survive the ZA?  or will it trip you?

 

Now, I come from a long and strong line of vetran crap-hoarders, but I fight against that tendency every day that I can.  There are hoarder months and bulldozing months for me as I fight genetics and learned behavior.  In recent times, I am applying a "use it or toss it" mentality much more than in the past.  It has made my garbage service less than thrilled with our household, but that's what they get paid for.

 

We endeavor to use everything at least twice before discarding it (although SOME things are very strictly one use items and will NOT be used twice.... no matter what), and to stem the tide of frivolous spending when those resources could be better used elsewhere.  Our grandparents lived through the Great Depression, and we can learn a great deal from them as we prepare for the ZA.  Finding the right balance of well-supplied and just having a lot of crap laying about is something each household needs to do for itself.  If I could not sew or fidget with crafty things, my primary form of entertainment would be gone.  For others, reading material is of utmost importance.

 

Learning to live without the television is coming easier and easier to Americans with the HD revolution where the GOONS sold out to the major entertainment corporations.  Non-electric means of making one's mind and hands busy will become more and more important. Discover what you have and what you need to dismiss, lighten the load so you can have a stronger bulwark in other places.  Start looking at what things are now and what they will grow to be: a problem or a solution?

 

Surviving isn't just having a pulse, it's having a life to go with it.

 

Doing it Because You Can

There are mornings when I would really rather not get out of bed.  Really.  But I think of people who no longer have the option of getting out of bed, and I figure that I don't want my choice to get out of bed or to not get out of bed taken away, so up I get, and put two feet on the floor.  It's not that I'm especially keen on getting out of bed, it's just that given the ability to, I should do it every day, as who knows when that ability might be taken away and I will spend all my time in bed (horribly hooked up to tubes and machines that go "ping!").  So I get up.  And I dress for my day, either for work at the workplace or for chores around the house.

I also find consolation in being able to go to work, for, once again, not everyone has that option.  I take the opportunity to play/work around the house (chores) and take pleasure in it, because it lets me be free.

People who don't choose to work their property lose their choice to eat untainted food and lose a great measure of personal freedom over their own destiny. (and then they become the walking dead... you've seen it)  So, I do it because I can, I'd rather keep swimming upstream instead of allowing myself to drift downstream into the jaws of the GOONS and those that would take away my freedom.

More for the Knees

When you are running from the undead in the ZA, your sore knees should not slow you down!  Many people train the muscles around the knee, to strengthen the joint, but few take into consideration flexibilty and strength of the joints above and below the knee; the hip joint and the ankle joint.

Fortunately, working a full ROM of the knee joint also works flexiblity of the hip and ankle, but additional strengthening of the hip unit can only help.  A standing glute extension is great for firing the glutes, which are traditionally a very lazy muscle group.  Remember to work that extension in all directions, as life does not happen in one plane of motion.

Life comes at you from any and all directions, just like zombies, and you need to be prepared for the worst of it.  Working your muscles in several directions really helps for this possibility. 

For the ankle joints, work flexibility, and small amounts of strength work well.  Try drawing the alphabet with your toe while relaxing at night, or under your desk during the day, A-Z with both the right and left  legs will help considerably.  Also, try lifting up on your very tiptoes about 15 times a day, flexing your ankles as much as you can.

Remember, the knee is not an island unto itself, the joints above and below are just as important!

Don't Tell Them What You're Doing

If, by chance, the GOONS give you a GPS unit to put on your car to allow you to pay extra fees for driving your normal commute, I strongly encourage you to say NO, and to back that up with whatever stern argument you can come up with.  If they insist, begrudgingly take said unit, get away from the GOONS as fast as you can, and get creative with it in the privacy of your own home.

Microwaves might help the GPS unit function better.  It's worth a try.  Other than that, setting them near rare-earth magnets might also improve them quite nicely.  I've heard that government issued GPS units are often thirsty, and need water.  Maybe they are dirty and need washing.  With soap and everything.

The GOONS have no business whatsoever knowing where you go, when you go there, and what you're doing when you get there and back.  Allowing the GOONS to follow you using modern technology is giving consent to invasion of privacy (more so than they already do) and gives them the tools they need to control your movements, should they decide to declare a police state.  I strongly recommend not making that easy for them to do.

On any level.

ever.

A Special Stock-up Item

Note to self (and others):  stock up on coconut cream and cans of curry paste.  A little bit of happiness will go miles during the ZA.

Are You Fit Enough?

Looking into the future to when the TSA finally zaps the shufflers enough to make them into rage zombies, and the ZA is ON.  Are you in good enough shape to outrun them?  Zombies don't get winded and there's always more of them running after you if the first one falls down.  You're going to have to know how to run, jump over and across things, climb over stuff, crawl under things, carry loads while doing all of this, and be able to turn around and shoot one if you have to.

That's a tall order.  Are you up for it?

To create your fitness plan, keep all the above in mind, and incorporate all the skills you may need during your workouts at least 3 days a week.  Other times, running is good (faster is better, my friend), biking is good, running while carrying your bike is awesome.  Your workouts should most times (if not always) incorporate the five basics of strength and conditioning: push, pull, 2-leg work, 1-leg work, rotation.  If you can incorporate these things,  you are fairly well covered until you are in shape enough to add power to your workouts (sprints, plyometrics, extended isometric holds).

As you start, remember to start small and build on what you have established.  Walking leads to jogging leads to sprinting.  Lifting light weights leads to lifting heavy weights leads to full range of motion with the heavy weights.

Exercise will not bring on asthma, heart disease, or other chronic conditions, but it WILL bring them to the forefront, so always listen to your body and seek medical attention if a chronic condition reveals itself.  Contrary to popular belief, running will not give you bad knees.  A study of runners showed that the population of runners have the same incidence of poor joint health as non-runners, but running brings it to the foreground and make people aware that they need to take care of their joints.

The exception to the rule is doing really stupid things while hefting weights.  Keep your motions as practical as possible, following what you would do with those muscles on a regular basis and you should stay safe.  Remember the shoulder unit is a fragile and poorly designed unit, so be smart about training it.  Any sharp pain is an indicator of injury, and you should stop what you are doing and apply the RICE technique (Rest, Ice, Compression and Elevation).

Does walking have a place in your plan? It sure does!  The ability to cross great distances on foot will be of vital importance, so keep your ability to do so, but remember, you will likely need to sprint here and there to survive!

The more fit you are, the better your survival rates.  Good luck out there.