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One of the biggest problems we have to overcome in preparedness is normalcy bias or the “nothing ever happens” syndrome. Things are happening and global risk is going up. We have to see the world as it is, not as it should be or as something happening “over there”. We just had a terror attack in Texas and political violence is increasing across the board. The risks are not just violence, though. We are overly reliant on the free flow of electrons, so we have the ever-present risk of a cyber attack or physical attack/freak accident on our power infrastructure. Economic risk comes from rising prices and the slowing of global supply chains due to the war with Iran.

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.  Since they heard the sound of the trumpet but did not heed the warning, their blood will be on their own head. If they had heeded the warning, they would have saved themselves.

Ezekiel 33:4-5

Good ole Zeke knew what he was talking about….so many see the warning signs, but completely ignore them. Today, we’re going to give a list of TODAY things you can do to be on a better preparedness footing.

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The first step we can do is both a preparedness task and a way to reduce the economic impact on you. By filling your tank every single day, you will pay less over time for gas, because you aren’t being impacted by as large a sum for gas price increases. If I get it each day and pay 5 or 10 cents more per gallon for 4-5 gallons, my overall expense for that week will be LESS than if I waited and had to pay a 40 cent increase for an entire 16 gallon (or more) tank. It’s the economic principle of “dollar cost averaging” and it works. Sure, by the end of the week, the cost is 40 cents more, but instead of buying 16 gallons, I’m only buying 4. Over a long enough time period, that’s a lot of savings. Also, should the payment networks or (God forbid) the power grid go down, you won’t be sitting on an eighth of a tank of gas – you’ll be full or nearly full.

As far as gas storage, here we keep 10-15 5 gallon cans full of gas in a secure gas storage building, along with several hundred gallons of diesel in bunkers, but we are a large camp with several vehicles and ATV’s. We have the added benefit of our own forest-fire-fighting truck that needs diesel along with the tractor. I refilled several 5 gallon cans this week.

You should be doing this monthly anyway, but test your generators. Our large facility-wide generator gets tested monthly on it’s own, but this week, we tested every smaller generator. We also double-checked the fuel supply in them all and we keep them staged near where they will be needed (in each building). Check your manuals, because a lot of generators can be converted to run on propane.

Charge up every battery bank you have. This goes for your cell phone battery banks or your bigger Bluetti/EcoFlow/Jackery boxes that you have. It’s no good to have the power go out and these be dead or low. I also keep 4 extra 18650 batteries charged. Keep a good supply of standard batteries on hand as well (AAA, AA, C, 9V).

Charging goes for all your electronic gear like tablets, radios, spectrum analyzers, necessary medical devices, and whatever else you have. Having a charged AED on hand is good. Something that gets overlooked are the 18-20 volt batteries for your cordless power tools. Not only could you need to use those tools, but those batteries can power a lot of things – I have an ammo can power box that is ran on 20 volt DeWalt batteries.

If you live in an area where cold is an issue, test and ensure fuel supplies on heaters. We have several that are kerosene and several that are propane. This week, we double checked and tested them all. We’ve got them from the small Mr Buddy propane can heaters up to giant torpedo style kerosene heaters. Coleman gas lanterns are great because they give light and can heat a room. Double check to make sure you have extra wicks.

I know I keep beating this horse, but CARRY FIRST AID GEAR. I keep a small kit on my body, a full IFAK in my backpack, and a large multi-casualty kit in my vehicle. First Aid is the one preparedness skill you might need before any others. Get a kit and carry it, but also learn how to use every item in your kit. If you bought a pre-made kit, learn what everything in it is and how to use it now, before it is needed. When someone is bleeding out or choking out is not the time to need to view a YouTube on how to use something. Get trained.

Check your supply level on any medications you are on. If you can, go and get a refill.

Whatever your personal defensive tools of choice are (baton, sprays, taser, firearms), carry them as often as you are legally able to (or more, wink-wink). There are bad folks everywhere and you don’t want to be the next viral video of a victim. You want to be able to defend yourself and others when the time comes, and lets be honest, none of us knows when the time may come. Be ready to defend at all times. That doesn’t mean roll around like WW3, but just be ready.

Update your situational awareness. This goes for world events, but also hyper local. Know your local weather for the next 48-72 hours and keep updated on it. Know when sunrise and sunset are. Know what is going on in your area (state fair, local festival, those crazy RenFair people). Check to see if your local area is planning a No Kings 2.0 protest on March 28th. Make plans to either avoid it or conduct intelligence gathering during it.

First aid kits, firearms, and radios only work if you carry them every day. Do it. Don’t own things “just in case” – make preparedness a true way of life and not just a hobby. We have to live it, not just talk about it or post it on Facebook/Instagram for street cred. Be about your business.

Take out some cash and keep it on hand. Sometimes, payment networks just go down. Carry enough cash to get through a day, and then carry a bit extra, just in case. Consider storing securely a good amount of cash at home, along with precious metals (silver/gold/nickel) and barterable goods (22LR or roofing nails – anything).

Friends, it’s time to acknowledge that we are in the collapse we’ve all been prepping for and things are different. It’s not Mad Max level yet, but it could be at any time. This middle semi-collapse is still dangerous.

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