Destiny Survival

The world seems to be getting crazier every day. You already see a need to prepare for strange and difficult times, otherwise you wouldn’t be reading this right now. But prepping can get overwhelming and downright frightening, especially if you’re just starting out. Or sometimes you just need a little boost along the way no matter how long you’ve been prepping.

Enter “Prepare Magazine.” It offers hope and help to preppers and seeks to lend encouragement and helpful motivation. On yesterday’s DestinySurvival Radio I spoke with Joseph Miller, founder and chief visionary officer behind the magazine. “Prepare Magazine” is celebrating its first anniversary. While it’s had its share of growing pains, Joseph and his staff are moving forward, and you’ll want to be in on it.

To give you some perspective on the magazine, let me tell you a little about Joseph. He’s not new to preparedness. He felt a call to prepare over 20 years ago, and since that time, he and his wife, Donna, have been on the Preparedness journey.

By the way, you may know Donna from Millers Grain House and Your Preparation Station on the Preparedness Radio Network. I’ve been on her show a few times, and she’s been on mine.

Joseph’s background is in community service. He served over 20 years in a not for profit organization helping families and children. Then he spent some time in the corporate world, which gave him a different kind of knowledge and training. It all worked to bring him to where he is today.

His call to prepare gave rise to his vision to start “Prepare Magazine.” Though he’d never published a magazine before, he saw a need to counter the fear and negativity often associated with preparedness. It’s his desire to publish a relevant preparedness magazine with a focus on sharing expert resources, purpose-filled training, and support and encouragement for others who are on the preparedness journey.

“Prepare Magazine” is available free online and is just now coming out in print for paying subscribers. While the print edition will have some of the same content as the digital edition, it will be different. Expect the digital version monthly and the print version every other month. Premium subscribers will have access to even more resources.

Joseph estimates they have 15,000 to 20,000 subscribers to the digital version, and they’re growing. Much of that growth has come through word of mouth and social media. The numbers are amazing, considering they’ve been around only a year. I’d say God has blessed their efforts.

The magazine won’t be overloaded with advertising. They’re selective about advertisers and want to emphasize good content. The goal is to cover a broad array of topics and themes of interest and importance to preppers, such as gardening, alternative energy, alternative health, bartering, mindset and community.

Contributors come from within the preparedness movement who write from their experience and expertise. They’re not writing about theory or regurgitating something from online.

The magazine doesn’t engage in politics. However, they are open about sharing the Christian faith and hope in Christ. They’re not heavy handed about it though.

It’s Joseph’s hope that “Prepare Magazine” will provide excellent value to subscribers. He’s sensitive to the needs of readers. It’s also his desire to help bolster community among preppers.

There’s more to my discussion with Joseph Miller, and I encourage you to hear the whole interview when you listen to DestinySurvival Radio for May 16, 2013. To become a subscriber, contributor or advertiser with “Prepare Magazine,” go to www.preparemag.com

I’m a subscriber and appreciate what Joseph and his people are doing. There are other publications out there which have useful info for preppers. But for something just a little different, give “Prepare Magazine” a try. Join them as they grow, and you’ll move forward in your preparedness journey, too.

If you’re already a subscriber, why not leave a comment below and let others know how you like the magazine. Would you recommend it to other preppers? Is there something else you’d like to see the magazine cover?

What happens when you’ve done all you know to do to be prepared, but something comes along and knocks you off your feet? What happens when prepping isn’t enough?

Yesterday’s DestinySurvival Radio featured an interview I did with Donna Miller of Miller’s Grain House which tackles those questions. Donna and her family have been into the preparedness lifestyle for years. But a few years ago they had some reversals that put their stock of preps and their faith to the test.

Considering the way things are headed in our country these days, now seemed like a good time to re-air my chat with Donna. I encourage you to listen to DestinySurvival Radio for March 28, 2013. You’re also invited to read the post I wrote after my interview with Donna last summer. View it here.

Prepping is all about facing adversity. How ready are you?

When Ulysses Press contacted me to see if I’d review The Prepper’s Cookbook, by Tess Pennington, I wasn’t sure about it. My first thought was, “This isn’t my area of expertise.” But I thought you and other readers might be interested. Besides, I was curious to see what goes into a cookbook for preppers.

After working my way through the book and interviewing Tess Pennington for yesterday’s DestinySurvival Radio, I can tell you why you should have The Prepper’s Cookbook in your survival library.

Have you been setting aside canned food items from the grocery store in your survival pantry, but you don’t know how you’ll use them creatively? Or have you purchased dehydrated and freeze dried foods, but you don’t know what you’ll do with them when the time comes to feed yourself and your family in a grid down situation?

It’s The Prepper’s Cookbook to the rescue.

Tess says she’s always been around people with a readiness attitude, but she took preparedness more seriously after 9/11, when she was involved with the Red Cross. Then the declining economy a few years ago was a further motivator.

She’s the founder of ReadyNutrition.com, which is a popular prepping website with over 160,000 readers a month. Her site promotes disaster preparedness, homesteading and, ultimately, self-reliance.

She has a simple mission–to introduce easy to understand concepts and strategies for dealing with disasters and emergencies, be they man-made or natural. She believes that through knowledge, skills development and family-based preparedness, we can learn to live a more sustainable lifestyle.

Her site offers a popular web-series called “52-Weeks to Preparedness.” It’s free and has helped thousands get ready for life’s unexpected disasters.

This cookbook contains more than recipes. Tess introduces practical prepping concepts and teaches you how to make the most out of your food supply. She uses low-cost ingredients found in many homes, and she shows you how to use your food pantry to make a variety of meals during emergency situations. Tess gives you guidance on…

Find chapters on…

Find recipes for things like…

As you would hope for in a cookbook, there’s a handy conversion chart in the back as well as a helpful index.

As with any useful skill, it’s important to practice now to be prepared for trouble. Start using the recipes and techniques called for in The Prepper’s Cookbook. You don’t have to be limited to freeze dried meals or MRE’s. Turn shelf-stable, freeze-dried and dehydrated foods into delicious, nutritious dishes your family will love eating.

Besides, the more you prepare ahead of time now, the less fuel you’ll need for cooking later when it’s in short supply or not readily available.

Tess has recipes to help avoid appetite fatigue and make certain foods associated with survival more appealing. There’s no need to dread them. If you’re going to store what you eat and eat what you store, make the most of the investment you’re putting into your survival pantry.

For example, we talked about things you can do with…

I confess, I’m not much of an outdoorsman. When it comes to outdoor survival skills, I defer to others for their expertise. So, as with other areas related to family preparedness, I like to put you in touch with people who have products and services that will be beneficial to you.

Have you considered taking classes at an outdoor survival school? If so, perhaps you don’t know where to start. How can you find one that’s reputable? Are there family friendly schools that offer good training, but aren’t like military boot camp?

Fortunately, the answer to that last question is yes. Here’s how I came to find out about such a school, specifically Nature Reliance School.

I became affiliated with Dan’s Depot a while back. And they were kind enough to offer articles I could share with you. Craig Caudill, a consultant to Dan’s Depot, has written articles you can view here and here. You may see more from him in times to come.

It seemed like a good idea to interview Craig for DestinySurvival Radio. So he was my guest yesterday, and I think you’ll enjoy our visit..

Craig is the chief instructor at Nature reliance school in central Kentucky. Based on our conversation, I’d say he’s an easy going kind of guy you’d want to get to know and learn from. Allow me to take a few paragraphs to help establish his credibility with you.

As the bio info on his site says, he “was blessed to grow up with parents that enjoyed the outdoors. He spent his childhood years exploring creeks, and woods at his home and at the family farm. He spent many weekends with his dad and other friends, sleeping in tipis and lean tos in reenactment events as well as caves and other wild places.”

“He also spent a great deal of time hunting and fishing, and was taught very important “woods ethics” by his dad. At an early age he challenged himself with two distinct “woods sabbaticals” in which he walked into the wilderness with very minimal supplies (a knife) and stayed for nearly 30 days each. These two experiences left him understanding the limits to his knowledge of bushcraft and wilderness living. It was those two experiences that have led him to the last two decades of practicing and honing practical wilderness skills alongside, primitive skills (i.e. Native American and other aboriginal culture skills).”

Craig has trained with notable instructors, too. One of them is Dave Canterbury of the Pathfinder School and co-host of Dual Survival on the Discovery Channel. But as Craig modestly told me in our conversation, he doesn’t want people thinking he’s cool or that he’s the only one who has all the answers.

He’s also an accomplished author who has written or been featured in several magazines including Self-Reliance Illustrated and others. He’s also written a weekly newspaper column and has been featured on educational TV in Kentucky.

Craig also loves teaching both adults and youth, especially to those who are new to outdoor experiences. In an e-mail he sent me, he quoted the late Jeff Cooper who said, “You will not rise to the occasion, but rather default to your level of training.” Craig believes in promoting family preparedness, rather than “lone wolf” survivalism.

Nature Reliance School started in 2006. It’s a good place for beginners. Craig wants to help you have a useful set of outdoor survival skills when you complete the course. And to be sure the skills stick, you can go back and take the classes later at a next-to-nothing price. Making a fire, building a shelter, procuring water, etc., are skills that should be used regularly to maintain those skills.

Craig makes Nature Reliance School family friendly by keeping prices affordable and inviting parents to train with their children. While training is suitable for the inexperienced, the school is also open to those with more advanced skills, such as those in Special Forces who want to brush up on their training.

Different classes serve different skill levels. Whether you want to learn land navigation or survive in the woods with just a knife, you’ll find what you’re looking for at Nature Reliance School.

A chief aim of the school is to get people connected with nature. You should have the confidence to know you can learn to survive outdoors if you have to. The skills can be useful for surviving scenarios like earthquakes, which are a real possibility in the part of the country where Nature Reliance School is located.

But urban survival is important, too. Therefore, Craig has developed material on that which is provided by Dan’s Depot.

Craig makes it a point to be genuine and open with his students. Though he’s the teacher, he’s open to new ideas, too.

He and his staff want students to get a lot of hands-on experience. They also believe it’s important to work in groups, which will be essential in long term survival situations.

When I first found out about Dan’s Depot, I was impressed with how much instructional material they offer on their site. You’ll find videos, articles, a blog and forums. They’re not just selling gear. They really want to educate people and help them develop useful skills.

To my surprise, the company hasn’t been around that long–only a little over a year. But they’re aggressively reaching out to their intended audience. As a result, they asked Craig Caudill to become a consultant to help develop gear and kits and provide part of the training they offer.

Craig says he can’t say enough good things about the Dan’s Depot community. That includes the people who work at Dan’s and the people who participate in the online forums and comment on blog posts.

Equipment that’s been tested in the field is important, and Dan’s Depot strives to make it affordable. But wherever you are–urban or wilderness setting–mindset is crucial for self reliance.

Your survival gear won’t save you. It’s your skill using it that will save you. Dan’s Depot aims to provide you and me with the knowledge and mindset necessary to use that gear.

If you’re wondering how to get started, Craig recommends watching the DVD’s from Dan’s Depot, such as the one on urban survival. Also, check out the site’s forums.

Craig and I talked about more, but to hear it all, listen to DestinySurvival Radio for March 14, 2013. Check out the Nature Reliance School at http://www.naturereliance.org/. Find Dan’s Depot at http://www.dansdepot.com/ or click on any ads you see for them on this site.

Have you been to the Nature Reliance School or another outdoor survival school for training? How was your experience? Would you recommend such training to others? Leave a comment and share your thoughts.

As preppers we usually think in terms of sheltering in place or bugging out. But what if you’re caught at work, school or somewhere else away from home when disaster strikes? How will you get back home? What should you have with you to survive?

Alex Smith (no relation) has written a book about that called Getting Home, and it’s a DestinySurvival Amazon Pick. Alex was my guest yesterday on DestinySurvival Radio. Alex describes himself as an avid outdoorsman who enjoys hunting, fishing, hiking, camping, etc. He says he’s saved by grace, and loved by an awesome woman. How can you beat that?

Getting Home is written for someone with beginning or intermediate knowledge of survival and disaster preparedness. Yet there are tips for those with more advanced knowledge and skills. Besides, sometimes it’s good for any of us to go over the basics. And this would be a good book to pass along to someone else who’s less knowledgeable than you are.

It’s not a lengthy book, yet it packs in a lot of info without being overwhelming. Chapters cover…

When Alex discusses firearms–as he does at some length–or when he discusses various packs and their contents, he tells us what he uses. I appreciate this. While general recommendations are always welcome, I like to know what someone else is doing and why. That way I can make better decisions about what I should have.

Alex saw a need for writing this book and making sure it was written simply enough that the material could be grasped by anyone.

He’s modest in saying he’s not a professional expert. But his extensive outdoor experiences have taught him much about what’s important and what isn’t when it comes to basic survival. This translates into guidance he can give as it relates to preparedness.

Getting Home is written to help you and me tailor what we need for our specific situations. Some of us work close to home, while some drive an hour to work. What you pack in your kits is determined by your particular circumstances.

Personal health and self defense are so vital to survival that Alex put them first in his book. In a nutshell, take care of yourself, and exercise your Second Amendment right to responsibly protect yourself.

Alex says self defense isn’t about killing someone. It’s about you being able to survive. Neutralize the threat and escape. If you finish off your opponent out of bravado, you’re committing a crime.

If you’re not familiar with the various ways to carry a handgun, you’ll appreciate Alex’s info on holster options. There’s quite an array of creative carry options for both men and women. Your clothing, climate and lifestyle should be considered when you choose what’s right for you.

While Getting Home includes very good lists of what to have in your various packs, be mindful of what not to have, too. For example, if your workplace prohibits firearms, don’t get yourself in trouble over having a gun or ammo.

Don’t expect your employer or even First Responders to take care of you if you’re stuck at the office for a day or two. The same is true if you’re stranded in your vehicle. Be responsible enough to be prepared.

What if you’re stranded with your children? Should you seek help from strangers? Alex and I covered these, too.

We also discussed what it means to be the “gray man.” He emphasizes several times in his book that your pack shouldn’t be camouflage. Blend in. Don’t stand out.

Would you believe Alex suggests packing tampons and comdoms? They do have their repurposed uses for survival in extreme situations.

If you get stuck on your route back home, would family or friends know where you might be found? Have you plotted out way points or notable landmarks for point of reference?

And what’s the deal with putting an apple in your mouth if you’re confronted by a shark? There’s a bit of humor in that one. But the last chapter of Getting Home deals briefly in general terms with several myths and sets the record straight as to what you should really do to survive.

Hear my interview with Alex Smith by listening to DestinySurvival Radio for February 21, 2013. Alex has a blog you can view it here.

Order Getting Home by clicking on its image below. That takes you to the Amazon page where it’s featured. Add it to your cart to start the order process.

How well prepared are you if you’re away from home when things start popping? Share any insights you have by leaving a comment below.