EDC Means “Every Day”

A man was killed in a knife attack in Paris yesterday and two others wounded. Assaults and attacks related to the Gaza conflicts are happening all over the world and the victims rarely have anything to do with either side. Extremists on both sides are using it as an excuse to commit violence. Meanwhile, crime is up all across the US, world tensions are at an all-time high, and cyber-attacks are having an incredible effect on daily life.

then if anyone hears the trumpet but does not heed the warning and the sword comes and takes their life, their blood will be on their own head.

Ezekiel 33:4

There are alot of people hearing the trumpet, but not many heeding it’s warning. Many people will spend all day debating what’s in their “EDC” on social media, but then get caught in a robbery without that “EDC”. Even worse, they might come across one of these stabbing attacks and have no way to treat the wounded or themselves.

That’s why todays’ topic is that “EDC means EVERY DAY”. I hear people say “I’m not taking my gun because I’m just running to the corner store” – despite the corner store being statistically the most likely place they’ll need it. Worse yet, and I’ve been guilty of this myself in my younger years, “This business trip is just two days….I don’t need to haul along the Get Home Bag or extra gear for just two days”. I remember being on the corporate security team at Target in the days following 9/11 and the struggle to get all the business travelers home with no planes and rental cars sold out.

When I speak of every day carry, I’m not just talking about your pistol. That’s just the one most associate EDC with. What about knives? None of us should ever be caught outside the house without at least a folding knife, but what about the other 2 pieces of the 3 blade rule? Do you always have a fixed blade and a mutlitool available? I never leave without all three. The fixed blade was a challenge, until one evening when Kyle Tepfer handed me a blade made for me specifcally that was much thinner and more concealable with my everyday clothing. Find Kyle Tepfer blades at the Brushbeater store by clicking this link. Check your local knife laws, first. For example, in Michigan you can only carry a fixed blade CONCEALED if it is for hunting. I happen to know that you can hunt pigs, crows, and coyotes year round, so I’m a hunter every day. You can, however, open carry any length of fixed blade and I know a guy who opens carries a sword (well, I know where he hangs out, I don’t actually know him – he’s weird).

The most overlooked EDC though is medical. While I think we should all carry a full first aid kit all the time, you should certainly at least carry a smaller “bleed kit” that has a battle dressing, hemostatic gauze, and a tourniquet. This is pretty small, and I generally carry at least that in my left cargo pocket (yes, even you cargo shorts people can). Most often, I carry a Solatact PTK in the bottom outside pocket of my EDC backpack (my Get Home Bag). I can’t tell you how many times we’ve come across an injury accident and been able to help – you should always have medical gear available. Once, when I stopped to buy a soda, I came out and three 12-14 year old girls were outside the the store and one had just fallen off her bike. Because I had stuff available, I was able to guide her friends through cleaning and dressing her cuts.

A pen and some paper is another EDC thing that is overlooked. I carry a Rite in the Rain pen and a small RITR notebook in a small little wallet-like thing or my RITR index card wallet. You never know when you need to write something down or document what happened and having all weather stuff helps. One a side note, George from Suburban Homsteading showed me that I can make a Zebra all-steel pen into a RITR pen using the right refill.

Another item I carry every single day without exception is a flashlight. I carry some type of flashlight everywhere I go, day or night. Having been inside some buildings in less than savory areas when the lights have gone out has ingrained this in me. Flashlights also have a lot other good uses, like medical (checking for concussion, etc). I prefer USB rechargeable ones because I don’t need to carry extra batteries, but I have both types. I have a stupid number of flashlights, but a Streamlight Micro is in my pocket everywhere I go. Invest here – don’t buy a $10 gas station “Tactical Light”. A good light is worth it.

Lastly, we come to communication tools. Every day, I ensure that a charged battery bank and cable is with me. I might need it. Also, I carry a signal mirror and whistle in my EDC backpack every day, just in case. One of the things I’ve harped on is carrying a radio everywhere you go. This probably comes from a career in protective services and investigations, but it’s not a bad habit to get into. If the cell network goes down while I’m at work or out, those 15 Baofengs at home don’t do me any good. I carry a handheld in my backpack (Baofeng BF-F9 with extended battery in a faraday bag) but I also have my business EDC radio (either an XPR6550 or XTS3000), which also has all the GMRS frequencies programmed in. It costs me nothing to toss it in the car, even though I have a vehicle mounted VHF/UHF radio as well. Redundancy is the key and I might need to abandon the vehicle.

This might seem like a lot to bring with me every day, but once it becomes habit, it seems like nothing. Also, now, I have a little anxiety if I don’t have all of this stuff with me. I’d rather be prepared than not.

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