April 18, 2024

Two Great Emails From Readers

Thank you all for the prayers and encouragement for the radio interviews.  I had the first one Thursday afternoon! I was so nervous that I don’t remember some of what was said. I didn’t run out screaming, so I am calling it a win!  LOL  I will post a link to the interview when there is one.  Thank you all again for your prayers and support.

Today I am going to post two smaller articles, ideas for which came from reader emails.  I thought I would share their questions and my opinions with the rest of you.

 

Do you Need a BOL When You Live In A Rural Location?

The first question comes from Alison, who asks:

“We don’t live in the city; we live north of it by about 30 minutes, on a lake populated mostly by seasonal folks, and there is a limit on development, so about 25 permanent residences and 30 cottages.    Do we still need a bug out location?  Or can we consider home our “go to place”. 

 

This is a great question.  My response;

“I think in the vast majority of situations staying put no matter where you live is a better idea.  The more urban you are the sooner you need to bug out.  But I think no matter where you live, you should have a bug out plan.  It doesn’t have to be land you own.  I wrote about this in the article I wrote below, look for the section called “No BOL? You still have options”. 

The name of the article is (–LINK Bugging out or Battening Down–) the section I reference is pasted below:

“No BOL? You still have options

Since you don’t own a BOL you’re not tied to one piece of land. Pick a destination in each direction; north, south, east and west. This gives you two to three directions to avoid trouble. I would pick a smallish town, big enough to have a hotel and use the hotel as the BOL. Why a hotel and not a camp or park? If your family is separated, you can call the hotel and see if they are there, you can tell the attendant that your family is on the way and leave a message for them. Once there you can either rent a room, or move on to another temporary BOL.

If things get bad enough to force you to bug out, the most important thing is that you’re no longer at home. Keep in mind that you’ll not be the only one with the idea. That’s why I think a small town is a good choice. It’s important to have a plan ahead of time, as you won’t want to be paralyzed with trying to figure out where to go.”

 

Alison gave me a bit more information on her property and I am a little jealous!  It sounds ideal to me.  I believe the more urban you are, the sooner you will need to bug out.  However there are many events that could force someone on a rural, well stocked, ideal property to need to flee.  Having a place in mind to bug out to if things go sideways is always a good idea.

 

Being Away From Home Longer Than Anticipated

 


Photo credit: alice-palace
Margaret sent me an email letting me know about some civil unrest they are seeing in Canada that is similar to the “occupy” movement we saw in the states.  She said it was taking its toll on commuters, and sometimes causing one to be away from home longer than expected.  She said we need to:

“”think ahead, think of alternate routes, have a bit of extra change for a coffee, keep a blanket and granola bar in the truck, make sure food and water are out for the pets at home and keep cell phones charged.”

Margaret brings up some excellent points, whether it’s increasing civil unrest, an unexpected detour, or other reason, we can often be delayed longer than expected and we, being Prepper’s, should make plans for times like these.

 

I am also a believer in Murphy’s Law:

“Anything that can possibly go wrong will go wrong.”

Because things often do go wrong, often at the worst possible time, I try to plan accordingly.  I am a firm believer in car kits.  They are something I think everyone should have.  Just about anywhere you go, your car isn’t too far away.  This is a simple way to make sure you have some supplies on hand for delays keeping you out longer than you expected.

Margaret also brings up a good point about pets at home.  Some pets can have food and water left out all the time.  Unfortunately, ours can’t.  They eat at a fixed time twice a day and wouldn’t stop eating if we were to leave food out.  If we have to be away from home much later than the time they normally eat, we try to have someone here to feed them.

What other unexpected events can pop up?  How can you mitigate them with a little forethought and planning?

 

If you liked this article please think about sharing it on the social media listed below, thanks!  And thank you, Margaret, for the comment!