Coming Soon: OUTPOST, by Adam Baker

When the end of the world comes,

Do you want to be the first to go?

Or the last to survive?

OUTPOST is the debut novel by ADAM BAKER about fifteen workers aboard a derelict oil platform in the Arctic Ocean who slowly discover that a mysterious pandemic is sweeping across the globe.  

The crew has been waiting for their relief ship but it never arrives.  They also find out that the world outside is slowly descending into chaos. After battling boredom and despair, they embark on a perilous journey to get home.  

Unknown to the crew of the Kasker Rampart, this is no ordinary plague.  

*****

Already receiving significant praise, a lot of excitement has been building up around its release.  I'm thrilled about the setting and hope to learn about the unique challenges that await the survivors in the frozen Arctic.  

A story about a global crisis and the struggle for survival makes this required reading. There ought to be enough nuggets that may prove useful WTSHFT.  

Save the date and grab a copy when it comes out on April 14, 2011.  Do I smell a book review cooking?  Heck yes.  Visit Hodder & Stoughton for more details.  

Stay vigilant!

To my friend in Alaska, your opinion on this one would be golden.

Happy 100th Birthday to the 1911

Yeah, I'm one day late.  Thank you Huey for the reminder!

My granddad used it in WW2 during the Japanese invasion.  During the war he was a Major in the Philippine Army and was also a renowned marksman who fought in the jungles of Panay.  There are a lot of stories of how his unit conducted guerrilla warfare with only the barest of equipment. And guess what pistol he was using?

When I was growing up, we just thought of his firearm as "lolo's gun" (translates to granddad's gun).   Like any of his generation, he didn't glorify anything about it.  It did its job, never failed, end of story.

When I got into practical shooting some years ago, I got reacquainted with the M1911 and discovered it to be an IPSC staple.  I find it really cool that I'm using something in my sporting carrer that my granddad would approve of.

And so I raise my cool non-alcoholic beverage to salute my our beloved firearm.  Happy 100th birthday! Safe shooting to everybody!

Stay vigilant!

Earth Hour 2011: Beyond the Hour

Earth Hour is upon us once again.  Lets show our support by switching off our lights at 8:30PM tonight.  Check their website for more details.

Be Productive

For us survivalists, we've got plenty of things to reflect on during this time.

1. Long-term implications - Are you prepared for a blackout?  How will your family cope if the power goes down for weeks, months or years?  A simple bug out bag won't cut it.  Sit down with your family and talk about going the distance.

2. Working in the dark - This is one of the few times when city slickers would witness the city deprived of illumination.  Go out and remember how your neighborhood looks like.  This is what it will look like in an extended zombie crisis. Now think about fighting for your life in the DARK.  You may be forced to evacuate your barricaded home and flee towards your next safe house.  

Inspect your emergency exits and see how well you can navigate them in the black of night.  Try to make do without a flashlight, it may attract unwanted attention.

From your exit, see how you can reduce clutter that may block your path. If a few flower pots are standing between your family and freedom, remember Murphy's Law move it to a place where nobody would trip over it.  (I did that and needed to make sure Mrs. Zombie Hunter approved of its new location.)

Survival will depend on being able to travel to your next safe house.  The family's emergency map will help, but nighttime navigation will be something you need to overcome. 

Learn from Dimitri: The night is your friend.

Use Earth Hour 2011 to help you own the night.  You'll need every advantage you could get to survive WTSHFT.

Stay vigilant!

Is your castle sturdy?

We just got hit by a 5.5 magnitude earthquake with an epicenter about 100 kilometers from my hometown.   Not yet the big one.  Have you been doing anything constructive?

Click to Zoom

For most of us, our homes will be the castle that protects our loved ones from the living dead.  Have you considered that it may no longer be safe in case an earthquake hits? 

A zombie apocalypse is not a short term event.  Months, weeks, or years may pass before mankind overcomes the crisis.  By then, government services that you are paying for would have already bellied up. 

The problem is that Mother Nature won't change her schedule just 'cause a few billion zombies are eating a few billion mammals.

Ready or not, she's gonna hit us.

Your Taxes VS The Zombie Apocalypse

I suggest you start making your taxes work for you sooner rather than later. One way is to call on the City Building Official's Office.  Its their job to make sure that buildings comply with safety standards.  Most of their attention is focused on high-rises and other commercial structures. 

If your home was built more than 10 years ago, it is time to have it checked.  Many new technologies have come up in the past decade, and your crib has been hit more than a couple of times since.  Those little cracks on the wall may not mean anything today, but what about the ones you don't see?  Quit worrying and do something about it. 

Its never too early to get the most out of things while the authorities are still around to work for you.  While you're at it, avail of essential services, programs, and other "freebies" that your municipality has to offer.  Free T-Virus vaccination?  Heck yes! 

Grab these things in the near future for your family's sake.

Stay vigilant!

The Smashing Coconut Test: Hand Axe

Prepare to get messy. You will inevitably engage in hand to hand combat with the walking dead, and there will be many situations calling for it.  You may be trapped & surrounded, trying to save ammunition, attempting a stealthy kill, or all of the above.  

We will need effective weapons and the right technique to succeed.  Whatever your weapon of choice, we must agree that we should be able to destroy a zombie with a SINGLE blow.  If you are not sure of your own, give this a try.

Fellow survivors, I present to you:

THE SMASHING COCONUT TEST (SCT)

Why the SCT:  The only sure way of destroying a zombie is to smash its brain. To do that, we should test what works and what does not.  Effectiveness is measured by the amount of effort needed to achieve brain destruction.  

$0.12 each

The Coconut:  Buy a few fresh coconuts, ask the vendor to get you one which is about to harden. At this stage, it has a similar density and toughness of a zombie's head.  Do not get a brown or dried coconut.  The fibers will be too tough for an accurate simulation.  

Preparation: Place the coconut on top of a stable platform.  Be sure that there is nobody near you while you are conducting this test!  Make a few practice swings of your weapon.  Attempt to simulate an actual swing that you will use in combat. Big outlandish swings are not practical.

The Weapon:  I have selected a hand axe manufactured by Creston purchased at Ace Hardware for Php 350.00 ($8.00).  It has a two pound head and durable haft.  I plan to keep this as my melee weapon once my shotgun is out of ammo.  I can draw my pistol with my right hand and keep the axe on my left.  With this I can engage the maximum number of undead at close range.  

The Test:  I need to be able to destroy a zombie with one blow using my left hand.  I will use an overhead strike with that hand and see how much damage I could do. My right hand is holding a toy pistol to simulate my combat technique.  

Technique: I drew it with my left hand from my belt, raised it up above my head in a smooth circular motion, and smashed it in a downward motion.  A zombie will be coming at me with both arms stretched, so my striking arm should be able to go right between theirs.

Results:  I have successfully destroyed the menacing coconut with one blow!  I am very pleased with the results. As you could see, the wedge shape of the weapon splits the round object in two.  I took another swing at a second coconut and also had the same results.  To complete the test, I shot the third coconut (not shown) with the toy gun.

Conclusion:  I am confident that the Creston hand axe is an effective close-quarters weapon.  It is light enough to wield with one hand while the other uses a firearm. I could even double the fun by using a second axe on my right hand.

After the test, I was rewarded with a pitcher of fresh juice and a nice coconut salad c/o Mrs. Zombie Hunter.  Ain't she the best?

Stay vigilant!

Key Resource: The Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM)

In times of crisis, we will be counting on various institutions to keep our loved ones fed, protected, and happy so we could ride out the storm. However, there is one special resource which stands out for the unique role it will play in the coming struggle.

This one provides hope.  The sort that may produce a final weapon against the zombie apocalypse.  It could provide a vaccine that prevents the infection that creates the walking dead.  Or perhaps from it we could even find a cure.  This one's worth fighting for.  I present to you the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine. 

 

Profile: Established in 1981, The RITM has been among the region's leading institutions that  conducts research, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of various tropical diseases such as malaria, dengue, hepatitis, and rabies.  

Strategic Value, Pre-Outbreak:   

Its nationwide data collection & monitoring makes it capable of detecting the early signs that may lead up to a  major outbreak.  The research & medical personnel are some of the best in the country and their contribution to health care is tremendous.

Strategic Value, Post-Outbreak:

The data collected from the earliest infections will be stored in the viral research lab.  This is what we must protect.  If anything would be needed to help find a cure or vaccine for zombification, it will be found here. 

Defensive Analysis:                                       click on the image to zoom in
Careful study reveals only one main weakness: the front gate.  It was designed only to obstruct vehicular traffic.  Barricading this area will require as much as the width of three cars.  It is also fortunate that the facility sits on top of a small but steep hill that has a lightly wooded perimeter.

The RITM itself is not expected to attract a large horde of zombies because it will be abandoned by the research personnel.

What matters is that survival or resistance groups must attempt to secure the viral samples & data so that it can be used in the war effort.  

Unfortunately, this also means that anybody attempting to reach this place would have to get past the Festival Supermall area where tens of thousands of zombies may be gathering.  

Know the Terrain:

The Emergency Map that I have made illustrates the RITM's immediate surroundings.  I have identified danger zones and areas of relative safety.  

It is my hope that this information can be shared and improved so that we may preserve a key resource that will help us in the coming zombie war.  

Stay vigilant!