My EDC

What is an EDC? Well in normal cases, think of Grandma's purse.  When I was a kid, if you needed something, grandma had it.  I think she was prepared to go on a game show at all times, remember the one where they asked if you had some item?  If you bust a seam on your pants, grandma had needle and thread.  If you lost a button, grandma had a safety pin. She had hard candy, tums, change for the phone, whatever you might need.

Today, we have to carry that a bit further with the instability of our nation the way it is.  I've heard a lot of people talk about their EDC's, so I thought I'd post mine.

In the first photo, are the individual items.  I always carry a scarf.  Scarves have a multitude of uses.  It can cover your head and keep the sun off of you, it can be wrapped over your mouth and nose to keep smoke out, or wrapped around your neck to absorb sweat (good for Texas). It can be used to alter your appearance. It can be used as a sling or a tourniquet. You can also use it to carry things.  I'm sure there are other uses, too, that I'm not listing.  I always carry a scarf.  Particularly now, while I'm going through chemo therapy.  If something were to happen to my wig (it's synthetic, so it could melt) I would need head protection and wouldn't want to look vulnerable.

Another thing in the above photo is a pad of paper and a pencil.  I have a knife on me, so I can sharpen a knife.  Pens are known to leak, explode, etc., even though they have their uses. The thing that looks like a pen is actually pepper spray.  That use is obvious.  The paper can be used to start a fire, leave notes, take notes, or pass notes when you can't speak.

I have an old Stanley staple gun case that has several items in it.  I will list them individually with their uses

 

Paint stick, broke in half: Kindling, splints, can be sharpened into a spear to hunt or for traps.

One half is wrapped with 500 cord: There are a multitude of uses for para cord. I have about 15 feet (I'm 5'5 and I measured by stretching my arms to full length 3 times). Para cord can be separated into smaller cords and the individual cords can be used as well as using it whole

Lighter: Obviously for lighting a fire, for seeing, lighting a torch, etc. Setting a signal fire, though in an urban situation, I won't need that.

Combination whistle/compass/thermometer/magnifying glass: I got it for the whistle...signaling.  I (unfortunately) navigate by landmarks like most women, not by direction.  I guess that means I should include a scale map. The magnifying glass would help if I lost my glasses, or to start a fire if the sun was out.

Fishing tool: This has screw drivers, a blade, a saw, pliers, and will measure up to 5 inches. I think the uses for that is pretty obvious.

2 Pairs of gloves, each wrapped with a pony tail holder: The gloves are obvious, to protect your hands in case you have to deal with someone bleeding that you don't know. The pony tail holder is just an extra tie down or fastener.

Plastic bag with sport wrap in it: The bag can be used to hold water, leave a note in a watered environment, store small things you find that you may need to keep, etc. The sport wrap is that stuff that sticks to itself like you get at the lab when you get a blood draw.

Square of tin foil: A square of aluminum foil folded down into a small square.  This can be used to cook in an emergency, to signal, lots of uses.

Sewing Needle: I've attached the sewing needle to the square of aluminum foil with duct tape.  Both are of use.  The duct tape is obvious: Duct tape fixes everything. The sewing needle can sew clothes or stitch up a cut.  Though I'm not sure I could stitch myself unless there was no one else available and it was an EOTWAWKI situation.

Plastic bag with medical supplies: I'll go into detail on this in the last photo.

3 Tampons: No, not for me.  I'm post-menopausal.  This is actually a cheap way to filter water.  It doesn't get rid of bacteria, but it will strain it. But if I'm desperate and need a drink, I'll drink from the creek. You could also filter water through the tampon, then boil it up in an aluminum foil bowl.

Flashlight: OK, another obvious thing.  This one is wrapped in Duct tape as well, just another way to have more duct tape...can you ever have enough?  I could unwrap it and wrap a hose leak on my car enough to limp home maybe.

Coffee sleeve: I don't know why I threw this in there...coffee emergency? It just seemed the right thing to do. It's cardboard, flat, but expands to a circle, just seemed smart. Use it like a pot holder?

 

Now for my medical plastic bag:

Travel bottle of shampoo: Right now I don't need it for my hair (don't have any) but I might need to wash something or could use it to wash my hands.

Steri-strips: In case I can't sew up myself, I have steri-strips to close a wound.

Dental floss, removed from container: Takes up less room without the container, and I have a knife to cut it.  This is used for sewing, clothes or skin, for fishing line in case I'm really out in the boonies, to lash things down/together, etc.

Fingernail clippers: Besides clipping my nails, fixing a hang nail I could use it to cut small things.  It also has a nail file on it.  Sorry, don't know how to pick a lock with a nail file.

Alcohol prep pads: Besides medical uses, I believe it would help start a fire, if you're careful. You could sterilize a tool, like the sewing needle. Or sterilize a wound, ouch.

Non-Aspirin pain reliever: Pain, inflammation, fever, doesn't thin the blood.

Plastic bag: Once again, it carries all the supplies, but if needed it can carry other things, including water.

Aspirin 2 packs: Pain, fever, inflammation, blood thinner.

Gauze pads: Wound control, fire starter.

Little bag with cotton swabs and bandaids: Bandaids obvious medical reasons.  I suppose you could use the cotton swabs for fire starters, too.  Just always have them on hand.

2 Gold $1 coins: Money, distraction, etc.

2 "finger cots": Putting on fingertips in case of injury, or I suppose if you needed some protection. I don't know if they'd hold any water or not.  I may at a later date throw a condom in this kit. It's supposed to hold water.

P38 can opener: I'm not carrying any cans, but if SHTF, you can bet I'd stop in and grab something to eat if it hit when I was far enough away from home.

Extra pills: I have my daily pills for two days, plus pepto pills, ibuprofen, and (don't ask me why) salt and pepper packets.

Small items in rolled up duct tape: Once again, more duct tape.  Inside are 3 pennies, paper clips, safety pins, tweezers, Emory board with more dental floss wrapped around it: Basically a fishing kit, I suppose you could jump something with the copper in the pennies, another thing I don't know why I threw in. But, you could bend the safety pins into hooks, or just to keep the scarf on.

Small bar of soap: travel size, in case I need to wash my hands, wash something else, etc.

 

So, that's my EDC. I keep these items, most of it inside the Stanley bag, in the center compartment of my purse.  The pad of paper, pencil, pepper spray and scarf are loose.  Yes, I carry a fairly large purse.  I was considering putting a backpack in my car with a spare pair of hiking boots, in case I'm not wearing comfortable shoes, and to throw my purse in to carry on my back, instead of as a purse.  In my car, I always have a military blanket (wool) and a jacket as well as a couple bottles of water and the grocery bags I always carry.  I keep a cigarette lighter operated air compressor for flat tires, and an emergency took kit.





Does President Obama have ties to terrorists?

This is going to be controversial, and I have no substantial proof, only conjecture.

While researching the terrorist camps in America (based on the book Twilight in America), I made a few connections.  I've developed a time line, and then I'll ask a few questions.

1980 - Sheik Mubarack Ali Gilani visits Brooklyn, NY and speaks at one or more African-American Mosques.  He is recruiting jihadis for Afghanistan.  He speaks to mostly poor African-Americans, new converts to Islam and prison inmates.
www.homelandsecurity.com/archives/1497

1979-81 - Obama becomes friends with Wahid Hamid and Mohammed Hasan Chandoo at Occidental College in LA.  Both men are from wealthy families who live in Karachi, Pakistan.  Chandoo does not go to Columbia, because he is deemed illegal when he overstays his VISA
http://teapartyorg.ning.com/profiles/blogs/obama-youth-and-his-pakistani-supporters

1981 - Barack Obama visits Karachi, Pakistan with Wahid Hamid and stays with the family of Chandoo.  Hamid is now Vice President of Pepsico. Karachi is listed as NOT American friendly.
www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/2081836/posts for a list of his friends and room mates.  Several are from Pakistan.

2002 - Daniel Pearl was to meet with Sheik Gilani, who apparently is from Karachi, Pakistan.  He was kidnapped and later murdered.
http://www.iqou-moa.org/sheikh_jilani/60_minutes_2.htm

So, according to this information, the Sheik who supposedly started training camps for terrorists in America is from Karachi, Pakistan.  He came to NY in 1980, one year before Barack Obama started college at Columbia.  In 1981, Barack Obama made a trip to Karachi, Pakistan with a friend he made at Occidental College who happens to be from a wealthy family that lives in Karachi, Pakistan.  This was one year after the Sheik visited NY.  Barack Obama had several friends who were from Pakistan. This same Sheik is also somehow possibly connected to the murder of Daniel Pearl, who was kidnapped and murdered.

Another thing I wonder about, is Barack Obama's ring.  It supposedly says "There is no god but Allah."  Supposedly he's had it since his days at Columbia University (or possibly Occidental), since 1981.  It would be interesting to find out if he got it from Sheik Gilani.  From the profile I've read of the Sheik, I can understand why he wouldn't put the second part on the ring.  He thinks he's the highest, though he doesn't state higher than Mohammed directly.

What a Week

This has been a week to remember, but not in a good way.  I'm sure others have a story to tell too, and I'm thankful that I haven't been involved in the terror attacks of this week.  I also pray for those who have been affected, either personally or through loved ones being injured/lost.

My week started Monday morning at about 7:00 AM.  I was having a racing heart beat, pulse of 124.  I monitored it until 9:00 AM, when my cardiologist's office opened.  My husband had gone on to work, since I had 2 older sons at home that could help me if I needed it. When I explained the situation, he said come on in when I could and they'd fit me in.  He also said be prepared, I might end up in the ER.  So I called my husband home to take me.

The doctor was listening to my pulse, and started out with, "It sounds fine."  Then he got a shocked look on his face and said, a bit alarmed, "It's doing something now!" He determined that the little bit of fluid in my lung (from the cancer) was pressing on my heart and causing the irregular heart beat.  He sent me to the ER.

I had just had my vitals taken, when all hell broke loose at Medical City, Dallas.  Three squad cars came racing up and a female officer ran in to the ER shouting they needed a gurney because they had an officer shot.  Mass confusion/chaos ensued.  They ended up walking the officer in, with an officer on each arm.  I think every single officer in the Dallas area descended upon that hospital.  I kinda felt sorry for the staff.  They already had every room full and were expecting delays.  They started sending the PA out with his little portable lap top to get additional information, they called a lab tech from another part of the hospital to do blood tests, and they were trying to get all the chest X-rays done that they could.  I ended up 6 hours before I even got a room.  Then I spent 6 hours in that room while they tried to figure out what was wrong. 

While in the waiting room, they were playing FoxNews, and I learned of the Boston Terror Attack.  I watched in horror all the scenes playing before my eyes.  I felt as though it would be another 9/11; where were you when you heard about Boston?

I ended up in observation for 23 hours, getting to the room at 8:30.  I had nothing to eat except a tiny bowl of oatmeal at 7:30, so that's 13 hours with nothing to eat...with a seizure disorder that says I'm not supposed to skip meals. When I got settled, about 9:15, they got me a fruit plate.  Best thing I ever ate.

After a fitful night of almost no sleep, I had to beg 3 times for breakfast.  I actually had to get up, walk down to the nurse's station and ask if they weren't going to get me breakfast, could they get me a Tylenol for my hunger headache? So, at 10:00, I finally got breakfast. They didn't figure out what could have happened until the doctor was signing my discharge papers.  It's possible I could have missed a blood pressure pill and had a rebound effect, shooting the pulse rate up.

The whole time I'm in the hospital, my sister-in-law (husband's sister) is texting me of the drama of her life.  Turns out (according to her) her husband is abusive.  He's in Maryland trying to find a job so she can move there.  She just left him for another man.  Like I need this.  Best of all, don't let her mom find out or her husband's mom (who they live with).

So, when I got home, I took a 3 hour nap, then started getting stomach flu symptoms.  There were 3 people in the hospital puking their guts out.  I put on my Four Thieves essential oils, took some Pepto, and felt better.

I wake up Wednesday morning with no power in the bathroom. It is currently our ONLY bathroom because we've spent the last 2 weeks getting the mold out of our master bath by replacing the shower.  We're not finished.  In case anyone new is reading this, I've been battling cancer for 2 years, and my husband is finally partial load bearing on a broken leg after a year and a half.  My sister-in-law asked if we had any spare food because the guy she's moving in with is a bachelor and wasn't prepared for this...they thought it would come much later.  I gathered up a box from my emergency storage...God does provide.

Meanwhile my husband can't take off more work, so I called his dad to help with the electrical problem. You know, the ones who are not supposed to learn about my sister-in-law leaving her husband?  So, I had to try to coordinate them coming over, making sure it wasn't at the same time.  Didn't work out that way.

Then, I discover when her mother in law got home, that I'm supposed to come and get her cat.

Then, I wake up this morning to a bomb going off in West, Texas.  What a week.  And today I have a chemo treatment in the middle of storms.

This is definitely a week I won't forget but I still feel blessed.  I pray for those affected in West, Texas and Boston, Massachusetts.

I have to wonder if Texas wasn't also a terrorist attack?  I'm hearing a 5 mile radius was leveled. Our country is falling apart.  We all have to realize that we need each other, and this isn't a Democrat or Republican thing.  America has to pull together, in spite of this president, and fight our enemies.  Sometimes the enemies are within.

Open Letter to President Obama, 2013

First, Mr. President, let me give you some background on me.  You always tell such lovely personal stories about other people to prove your points. So let me tell you my story:

I am 49 years old and female.  I'm a Navy veteran of 4 years (I tracked Russian Submarines during the cold war) and am married to a Navy veteran of 20 years.  I have 2 children who are at home.  My oldest is almost 23, Down Syndrome and autistic. He also has hypothyroid and occasional gout.  My youngest is 14 and is extremely ADHD, but gifted. 

I am also a cancer survivor.  Eight years ago, I was diagnosed with stage III Breast Cancer.  I went through surgery, chemo and my lifetime dose of radiation, 35 treatments.  Two years ago, my cancer came back in my lung and on my spine (Stage IV) and I've been battling it ever since.  I spent the first 9 months in a recliner, because chemo was much harder because they had to use a stronger one than the last time.  I had cooked my first 5 meals in a row, after my husband taking almost total care of me during that time.  That Friday, my husband broke his leg in a motorcycle accident, and I was taking care of him before I was ready. I had just been listed as in remission.  In December, 2011, it was back and worse.  They decided not to do chemo, since it didn't work last time. I developed an allergy to the med they were giving me. They switched, or tried to, but my insurance company wouldn't approve it.  Then they found a new chemo that is supposed to be gentler and put me on that one.

Meanwhile, my husband's hardware broke, which re broke his leg.  He had to start going to the VA.  I have Bill Clinton to thank for gutting that program, I guess).  He's been non-load bearing (on crutches) since September, 2011.

My insurance is through my husband, Tricare Prime.  You may have heard about it, it's a government insurance given to veterans.  I have to thank you for your "Affordable" health care plan, often referred as Obamacare.  I now have to decide whether I want to continue my cancer treatments and possibly win this battle, thereby bankrupting my family, or choose to die.

Let me explain that last statement.  I just got an email from Tricare stating that they were (against our will) transferring us from Tricare Prime to Tricare Standard.  Now, you may think that's no big deal, at least we're still covered.  The first step was when my son turned 20 and they kicked him off our plan all together, even though YOU said, Mr. President, that our children would be covered until the age of 26.  We're lucky in the fact that he gets SSDI, so now he's on Medicaid.  But let me explain to you the difference between Standard and Prime.  With Prime, which is what we'll have until September 30, 2013, when they force us out of it, we pay a yearly fee, and then one price every time we go to the doctor.  It was a great deal for us, back when the government actually reimbursed at a fair rate.  It was great, even having to pay for every radiation treatment, when I had cancer the first time. Of course, since you took office, Mr. President, I've seen reimbursement for an MRI drop from 20% of what was billed, to about 11% of what was billed.

With Standard, you don't pay a yearly fee, but you pay 20% OF WHAT THE GOVERNMENT ALLOWS.  I go to the doctor 3 times a month, every month.  I guess that will only cover the co pays, I will still have to pay for the medicines, which have also gone up. 

I distinctly remember YOU, Mr. President, telling me I would get to keep my insurance plan if I liked it.  I like it, but I'm not getting to keep it.  You, Mr. President are a liar.  So, now I will have to stop my cancer treatment on September 30, 2013, or bankrupt my family.  But, you see, Mr. President, the decision is actually easier than you might imagine.  I love my family.  I would sacrifice myself for them.  So the decision is easier for me.  I'll stop the treatment and cherish the time I have left with them.  But I do want you to know something.  You, Mr. President, with your "Affordable Health Care Plan" will leave my husband, who gave 20 years to this country, a widower in a very short time and having to take care of two special needs children on his own.  You, Mr. President, will leave my children without a mother.

But I'm sure you'll sleep well, even knowing that.