Bug the Fuck Out!

It's not all political around here.

I'm not always on a soapbox about politics, but since I decided to start using this blog, it's been election time. Now that it's over I can ramble some other shit. But I did win the election that I ran for. Another Libertarian in the system. I view Libertarians as an antibiotic to very sick organization.

So, on to some other shit.

I am planning my next youtube video. A good friend of mine did a pretty cool video series. He filmed some preparedness videos and recently ran a bugout exercise and filmed the preparation and the bugout itself. I thought it was really cool and he urged me to do the same. (By urge, I mean ordered) So that’s what it's going to be. I'll do a video of whats in my bugout bag and follow up with a second video of the bugout. Since the weather is getting colder I'm at the point where I'll be swapping some things out of my bag. I'll get the swap done and as soon as deer season is over I'll do a bugout with a couple of friends.

So, since I'm talking about bugging out, how many of you have a plan for hauling ass? I don’t care if it's hauling ass to get home from work or school in case of an emergency, or hauling ass away from home in case there’s a disaster that will take your home from you. There are times when hunkering down is the best plan, but there are times when it's something else entirely. I think a person should have their vehicle prepped for a number of contingencies, including always having enough gas in the tank to get home or to your chosen escape location.

In my house, we have a 3 minute/30 minute plan. Every member of the house has a “go bag” that we could be dressed, have bag and EDC in hand and out the door. If were taking them to the truck, great, the truck is set up to supplement the bags. But it's designed to work on foot primarily. That's our 3 minute plan.

The 30 minute plan, is to execute the 3 minute plan, and spend the next 27 minutes to gather our second level of gear. I keep our normal camping gear packed and ready to go for the next camping trip. We camp frequently and as I use consumables from those bags, I replenish them as soon as we return, before I pack it all away. So we would pack the truck with our bagged up camping gear and gather all the dry food in the pantry. Also, this would provide the chance for a larger loadout of ammunition. We also have a dufflebag with about a weeks worth of clothes for all 5 of us in an old seabag siting in my bedroom.

If it were a slow coming issue, such as flood, I would use something like a 3 hour time frame to fill every single air pocket in my truck with the shit I wouldn't want to lose. Of course, where I live now, if I'm going to get flooded, we all have a much larger problem than me losing my stuff.

I get accused of being paranoid for having these contingencies. I don't mind. As a father, my primary duty is the safety of my children. My secondary duty is to prepare them for their lives without me there to provide for their safety. Obviously, by preparing I am increasing their safety levels. But I do my best to keep them involved in these preparations so I am also teaching them skills that may save them when I am no longer there to do it for them. I feel that my 16 year old is more prepared than most adults to not only survive a disaster scenario but thrive. She has the right mindset to not be a victim nor a refugee. So, I must be doing something right.

I implore you to do the same. I have a lot of friends out there reading this. I really care about my friends, but face it, you guys are a second level priority. Family first. I wont be the guy to take from my family to help a friend, and a friend would never ask me to. So the more prepared you are, the better off we'll both be. If your plan is to rely on me, you are sadly mistaken. At best I don’t look forward to disappointing you in your hour of need, at worst I'd hate to have to shoot you to keep my family safe. Nobody wants to shoot their buddies.

Get a plan, and work on preparing for it. If you need some pointers, hit me up over at facebook and I'll do my best to get you pointed in the right direction.