I began 2021 with some goals. I wasn’t 100% successful, but overall I was pretty successful, and I was really successful with a few of my goals. Overall it was a pretty awesome year for me! Here’s a look at my 2021 goal accomplishment…not that you care, but to keep me honest.
An In-Depth DuoLingo Review
Mid-year I got a reader question inviting me to review the DuoLingo language-learning application. Since then I have given a lot of thought as to how to present such a review and after almost a full year of daily use I feel prepared to do so. This article is an in-depth DuoLingo review.
Beyond Tactical: Black Medical Gloves
I’ve observed a recent trend of cops and even some firefighters wearing black medical gloves. Black medical gloves come with a lot of popular prepacked “IFAK”-style medical kits. This is a good example of “too tactical,” or the cart leading the horse. If you buy a first aid kit that comes with black medical gloves, find some new gloves. I’ll explain why.
Micropreparedness: Keep Your Gas Tank Half Full
This isn’t exactly news to the preppers out there, but an excellent way to improve your preparedness is to keep your car’s gas tank half full..at least. Keeping some gas in your tank serves more purposes than you might think. Let’s talk about them.
Fire Emergency Preparedness
Most people reading this blog have spent thousands of dollars on guns, ammo, holsters, and training. I’m betting most of you would balk at the idea of spending a few hundred bucks on fire prevention stuff. Fire will kill you and your family just as dead as a mass shooter…and is a much more likely threat. How much energy and attention have you put into fire emergency preparedness?
2021 Goal Progress: October
In January of 2021 I committed to some New Year’s resolutions: spend 15 minutes per day learning Spanish, workout 3 times per week, shoot my bow 3 times per week, read 73 books, and stay off tobacco. This is my progress so far in the year.
Preparedness: A Realistic Bug Out Bag
The Bug Out Bag (bugout bag, B.O.B., or go bag) is the first place many people start with preparedness. Honestly, if it gets you started, GREAT – it’s a start! Unfortunately the bug out bag is often plagued with unrealistic expectations. Fantasies of “living off the land,” “heading for the hills,” and the “zombie apocalypse” too often color the concept of the bug out. Today I offer you a treatise on a much more useful, realistic bug out bag.
2021 Goal Progress – September
In January of 2021 I committed to some New Year’s resolutions: spend 15 minutes per day learning Spanish, workout 3 times per week, shoot my bow 3 times per week, read 73 books, and stay off tobacco. This is my progress so far in the year.
Becoming a Paramedic
Today I write to you as a a fully-credentialed, practicing paramedic. This post is going to talk about how I got here, and the road to becoming a paramedic. I’ve written about this a little bit before, when I had just started school. There seems to be a lot of mystery about becoming a paramedic, so today I’d like to go into a bit more depth. Here’s my experience. Yours might be a bit different.
Survival Cooking: DIY Denatured Alcohol Stove
The soda can stove has always intrigued me. It’s about as cheap as a camping stove can possibly get: it takes about 30 minutes of your time and can be made from two soda cans. Fuel is also cheap; a gallon of denatured alcohol will cost you under $20 at Lowes. Today I’m going to talk about the infinitely accessible “soda can stove” or DIY denatured alcohol stove.