Zombies, Aliens and Black Holes, Oh My!

Be Prepared #4

This piece follows the 3 part introduction to “Be Prepared”, available here: #1, #2, #3. It is beginning to look like this should be considered mere excerpts of the first chapter in what appears to be something headed towards full book, or at least a novella in length. This portion (first of at least 3) of “Chapter 1” discusses the process and philosophy more than actual practice or procedures.

Image Credit: Arek Socha on Pixabay

Prepared for What

“What are you prepping for?” is a question that can be interpreted at least two ways. Let’s call them “what-what” and “what-why”. (umm… Say what??!!)

What-why

This can be a derisive inquiry, intended to show scorn, or impugn intelligence. Asked in this way it inherently insinuates an overtly credulous, tinfoil-hat-wearing, conspiracy-theory-following, waiting-on-the-zombie-apocalypse, alien-invasion-dreading fool. Lunatic. Whackjob.

While I do frequently enjoy delving into some of my favorite conspiracy theories, I for one, do not consider a zombie apocalypse as viable. (Sorry Scott. Those stories, however, do sometimes make for a good read.) And if an alien race ever appeared in the skies of Earth, the mere fact that they had reached us through interstellar space would put their level of technology so far in advance of ours that we would be utterly helpless to prevent them from doing anything they wished–computer viruses, nuclear weapons, human ingenuity and mans’ (and womans’) innate will to survive notwithstanding.

However, there are many good reasons for asking this question and, in my opinion on this neoteric interest, it is one of the most important questions to ask because the answers to this question will (or should), in large part, determine your actions and decisions moving forward. Meaning, we can skip the prep for alien-zombies invading Earth and accidentally (or purposefully) pushing the planet off its axis with their ozone depleting, antigravity warp engines that draw their energy from the Sun causing it to cease the internal nuclear fusion that keeps us alive — and hypothetically, not zombies — and morphing it into an all-consuming black hole. For now.

Answers to why — though highly individual in nature — can be summed up in a few general principles, some of which are: I want to protect my family; I don’t want to get caught being helpless in an emergency; natural disasters; just being prudent; in case of shit-hits-the-fan (SHTF).

What-what

With the why answered, it is easier to move on to the “what-what”. Speaking as a neophyte (thinking “complete neophyte” was a tad redundant), this is almost as important as the why. Without a specific list of things in mind to prepare for, it is overly easy to drift aimlessly along picking and packing supplies for almost any situation – except the alien-zombies, of course. Well, mostly except for the alien-zombies. This results in an overly-stuffed, overly heavy “ready” bag. Also, the bag usually will not fit in the space you had prepared for it in this condition. It is possible that this experience is unique to only me. Twice.

What are we preparing for here in our household? We looked at three primary areas that we felt required our attention. As mentioned in Pack Your Bag portion of the Introduction, road trips were an area we felt we needed better precautions in place for; something beyond a ready spare tire and snack bags. We also looked at emergency situations: power outages, water outages, storm and other natural disaster emergencies. Finally, influenced by the stay at home orders issued by governors all across the country in the wake of the Wuhan Pneumonia – Covid-19 – we looked at ways to ensure we had at least two weeks of food supplies in the house. We’re still working on best options for two weeks worth of water for 4 people – nearly 60 gallons based on recommendations.

Our “Go” bag, sometimes referred to as a “bug out” bag, at the moment, is kind of a hybrid between a 72-hour emergency bag and a longer term bug out bag. That item, and its contents, appears to crave my attention more than the labradoodle does.

I have rambled for a good bit this morning. There is much more to this narrative, but it needs to “simmer” for a day or two. I would like to acknowledge a couple of sites that I have found extremely useful these last few weeks. These are not the only sites I have referenced, but are two that I keep returning to. First, The Prepared, at https://theprepared.com. This site is well laid out, logical, and reasonable in their assertions (meaning they aren’t terribly worried about the alien-zombie invasion, either – at least at the present time) and second, Graywolf Survival at https://graywolfsurvival.com because he currently hails from Arizona, has years worth of experience according to his site and a thorough, easy to read and follow presentation.

It occurs to me that after having spent at least three hours this morning composing this piece — and editing (and re-editing) — that future musings will have to be written during the week for posting on Saturday mornings rather than spur of the moment creation because of my mind’s tendency to derail a (hopefully) cogent thought at a moment’s notice. Much more yet to come. Thanks for reading my labyrinthine spurts of consciousness. Leave a comment if you are so inclined and be sure to visit again soon.