I'm thinking about taking the multi-user blog aspect of this site and changing it to a multi-user forum instead.  It'll be a lot easier to sort everything by categories and I'll keep the blogging aspect to myself.  I think that'll be an improvement, since we can keep track of issues and commentary in the forum, and I can keep everyone up to date on zombie incidents through the blog.

Let me know what you think.

 

One thing that is absolutely essential is that we have to be thinkers and not accepting everything we are told.  One thing that has been on every media outlet and news source is that greenhouse gases and global warming is destroying our planet and it is our fault.  While I am not debating global warming, being that I am not an expert in environmental sciences or a climatologist, I have thought about one aspect of this global warming "they" say is destroying our environment.  "They" say that excess carbon dioxide, CO2, is causing a warming effect and could be comsuming the available oxygen in the atmosphere.  One thing I know is that plants use CO2 just like we use oxygen.  And plants through photosynthesis produce oxygen just like we produce carbon dioxide.  I think that is a balance that is self correcting.  The more CO2 in the air the better plants grow and mulitply.  The more plants participating in photosynthesis, the more available oxygen in the air.  While we do need to take care of our land and environment and am a big advocate for that, simply listening to someone say that this is the way it is without thinking about what we know and have learned through school or on our own, mostly the latter if we grew up in public schools, is not doing anyone any good except those who are telling us what to do.  Survival will depend on us thinking for ourselves, taking care of ourselves, and not simply believing everything we hear.  If we subscribe to only the things that media (read: large corporations and the wealthy) we might have to survive sooner than we wanted. 

 

No good zombie survival site would be complete without a discussion on the firearms you'd stockpile, and what's suitable in a survival situation.  Personally, I'd want at least one shotgun (12 gauge), one semi-automatic rifle (I'd love an AK variant, but the M1 Carbine seems like it would do a good job), and a handgun of decent caliber and stopping power.

The Zombie Survival Handbook recommends .22LR rifle and sidearm because it reduces the weight and types of ammunition you have to carry. I'm not sure I agree because Zombies are the least of your problems, especially since early on you're likely to deal with panicky humans flailing around being stupid and then later probably raider/pirate/brigand types who are looking to resupply. 

I don't think we're talking about everyone being a cowboy, since that stereotypical figure would probably wind up trying to "go it alone" and get themselves and possibly others killed. I do think each person would need to train with a weapon of choice, and get at least familiar with the basics of firearms. 

Personally, I don't think I'd want a handgun with less than a .40 caliber round, with the possible exception of the .357 Magnum.  The magnum's limitation is the amount of ammo in the pistol at any given time...that's also a strength since you'd want to make each shot count.  It'd be way to easy to blow through a fully loaded magazine in a panic situation.  I think a 12 gauge pump action or semi-automatic shotgun would be fine.  you can pick those up at just about any wal-mart.  That's the strength of the .40 and .45 rounds...most everywhere in the US carries that ammo type.  Picking a rifle would be the toughest I think, since you'd really want to balance power, accuracy, durability, and availability of ammunition.  To me, that balance is found in the AK-47, though I'm sure there'd be plenty of arguments about that statement.

Could you make room in a group of survivors for people who refused to pick up a firearm no matter what?  And when it comes time to rebuild society, does that mean the ones who rebuild society will necessarily be militaristic and disciplinarian?  Maybe they should be? 

 

Really the most important thing is mental preparation.  Boiling this down translates into "suck it up".  This is vital.  There is no room for whining or "I am tired".  There is only room for everyone to cowboy up and do what you are told to do.  There is no "I try" or "I'll do my best".  There is only "I will be done".  If you don't the consequences are that people will die.  There is no "Well I am hungry and it is dinner time and it is dark out".  I guess that day you just don't eat dinner or sleep that night only to go back to work hard that next morning when everyone else is up and there are other things to be done.  Things will be "inconvenient" and "tough".  But is is also inconvenient that zombies rose up and ate my neighbors while I clearing a path with my shotgun and messing up the paint job on my car as I was using it as a battering ram and all the while not being able to hear the guitar solo on Free Bird with all the incomprehensible groaning and shooting going on.  We can harvest all the seeds, water, flour; we can farm the land and raise animals; we can build a compound, but none of it will happen with a bunch of weanies running around wondering what we are going to eat for lunch today and talking about a bunch of shenanegans.  Bottom line is in order to survive and being self-sustaining you have to grit your teeth get your gold bond and be ready to work and there is no place for complaining or whining about doing what needs to be done.  For instructions on being metally prepared watch "Man vs. Wild" Fridays at 9.  Bear Grylls drinks his own pee just because he is thirsty. 

 

This year marks my first attempt at gardening.  I've got tomatos, squash, okra, peppers, zucchini, and a single watermelon vine.  So far, I've got two zucchinis, about 20 small green tomatos, 5 or 6 good size squash, and a single pepper.

I'm trying to figure out how to grow a small garden that's best suited to my soil type and climate.  Ideally, it should cause minimal work and tending and provide a decent amount of fresh vegetables.  If I can figure out which veggies grow best, I'll expand the garden next year and plan to put up some vegetables using the methods my gramma used. 

My garden is just an 8x8 square sectioned off with landscaping timbers.  I pulled up all the grass (transplanting the sod to bare spots of course) and mixed in a few bags of garden soil and some black cow manure.  I covered it with landscaping fabric designed to keep weeds (and presumably cats) out but let water and nutrients flow through.  Rather than rows, I cut slits in the fabric and planted each plant building a mound around the plant to make sure it drains well.

So far so good.  My parents tell me my veggies are a little ahead of their much larger garden despite the fact they planted theirs earlier.  I'm situated only a little further south than they are, so I wonder if the cow manure made that big of a difference?

Does anyone have suggestions for vegetables that provide a lot of vegetables in a small space?  The largest garden I can probably support is about 24x8.

 

My brother-in-law came across "The Zombie Survival Guide" in my bathroom the other day and I think found himself moderately surprised at how good the book actually was.  Obviously, the book is a humor filled attempt at imagining what a Zombie Uprising would be like and doesn't even scratch the surface of how to prepare for full blown catastrophies, but it does get you thinking about the kinds of things you'd have to do without in major event - be it a zombie uprising, nuclear attack, viral pandemic, or major natural disaster.

For those of you who don't think it could get bad, just go have a look at tapes of what happened in New Orleans after being without power for a few days.  There are always going to be people who won't or can't prepare, people who are expecting to have someone else do it for them.  When the big one finally does hit, these people are going to suddenly realize the authorities who were providing for them are not even going to protect others anymore and the chaos ensues.

I'd highly recommend "The Zombie Survival Guide", because it's a good introduction to disaster planning and how to prepare your home, a safe house, and ultimately, a fortification for long term survival.  Once you're done with that, start looking for military manuals on topics like field medicine, establishing a temporary base, and start reading up on different types of weapons - because let's face it...there may come a day when you have to defend your homestead garden against raiders.

 

I'm celebrating the beginning of the end by creating this multi-contributor blog.  This will give our small band of survivor-types a chance in planning to carry on after the rest of the world quits.