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Survival Lessons from the Real Life Story of 127 Hours

Survival Lessons from the Real Life Story of 127 Hours

127 Hours is a movie about real-life mountain climber Aron Ralston who slides into a canyon crevasse while climbing in Utah. His arm is pinned under an bolder and he has very little food and water. After being trapped for 127 hours, he literally cuts himself loose from danger but amputating his arm and lives to tell about it.

During his 127 hours stuck in the crevasse, Ralston must resort to his basest survival instincts. So what are the lessons learned from this true story?

1. First and foremost: Use your head! To quote Joel at Survival Cache: “Your number one survival tool is the grey matter that keeps your ears apart.”

In the movie, Aron took off on his climb in a remote location without letting anyone know where he was headed. That was not using his head! He also took very little water and food with him with no plan for contingencies. On the other hand, he figured out that the only way out was to disengage from the bolder so with much bravery, he cut off his arm.

How to store water for emergency short term use

How to store water for emergency short term use

Freaking out over water or simply a water freak? I suppose it really does not matter since when it comes to water, I am a hoarder. In addition to my 55 gallon water barrel, I have cases of bottled drinking water in the cellar and another case or two in the garage. Is that enough? Don’t know. Actually, I hope I will never have to use my stored water.

How about you? Did you ever purchase that water barrel along with a siphon and a bung wrench? Or, if like a lot of folks, have you put off that purchase due to financial or space limitations?

It was recently pointed out to me that barring the acquisition of long term storage facilities (such as the water barrel), there are numerous ways to collect and store ordinary tap water for free. Not a bad idea, actually, especially when you take in to account that you may also use the free, short term water supply for cleaning, laundry, toilet bowl flushing and more.

So how can you safely store the water right out of your tap?

Getting Prepared Week 18: What if all is lost? Lessons learned from the recent tornadoes.

Getting Prepared Week 18: What if all is lost? Lessons learned from the recent tornadoes.

I am finally back home after a week long hiatus to the big city. Traffic, dirt, noise . . . yuk. Anyway, I am very thankful that I have my quiet little cottage here on San Juan island. Enough personal stuff; it is time to get back to the business of prepping.

The horrific storms sweeping through the southeast have not gone unnoticed from my place here in Washington State. As with the Japan quake, tsunami, and nuclear meltdown (which, for some reason is no long newsworthy) the massive destruction to homes and the fabric of normal life are gut wrenching. I keep thinking about the folks who thought they were prepared: plenty of extra food, water, auxiliary power and cash to get by in the event of a crisis. They too lost everything.

So once I again I raise my hand and say “What happens if my home is swept away along with all of my precious preps?” Now that is one heck of question, especially since we personally (oops, here I go again with the personal stuff) have made so much progress this year in preparing our little homestead to be self-sufficient.

Below is a list of the lessons I have learned from this latest disaster in Alabama, Tennessee and other areas of the Southern United States.