In a grid-down situation, people will turn to alternate means to cook, for lighting, and to heat their homes. These alternates often involve fire — propane stoves, candles, propane heaters. These pose a higher risk of starting a fire in your home. And, at a time when the fire department probably isn't coming. What can you do?

Mic's special guest for this episode is Brian Duff, a prepper and former fire fighter. He, Mic and Jeff discuss grid-down fire dangers.

Links:

Brian Duff's Mind4Survival.com website.

Brian's Book Mind 4 Survival on Amazon.

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Susan and Paul prepare a night landing spot for the Coalition operative. He arrives in a not-quite-dignified landing. It's Charon. They gather up his paraglider gear and return to Paul's house. While Charon urges them to destroy the glider gear so it can't be discovered, Susan feels the gear is too valuable as a resource. She and Paul must figure out ways to hide the gear.

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As a nod to winter, Mic, Jeff, and Brian, all watched the 2018 movie, Arctic, starring Mads Mikkelsen. He is the pilot of an airplane that crash-landed somewhere in the arctic. His survival skills have kept him alive for several weeks. When a rescue helicopter arrives, it too crashes due to storm gusts. Only the copilot — a young woman — survived, though gravely injured. He then tries to get her to medical care. The boys key off of this movie to discuss winter preparedness in general.

Links:

Movie, Arctic — (YouTube free version. What little is said, is dubbed in Portuguese)

IMDb Page for Arctic -- Writer, Director, star list. Reviews.

WinterReady tips from Ready.gov

f you are appreciating these topical episodes, consider becoming a Patron on Patreon, or a monthly member at Buy Me A Coffee, You can also buy Mic a one-time coffee at Buy Me A Coffee too. All support appreciated.

The story opens with Susan and Paul carrying food and water to some livestock hidden in a high woods. They are circumventing a new law that limits how much livestock people can own. Susan tells of discovering that the mysterious regular white van is carrying gasoline. She deduces that the gas is for an equally mysterious airplane the Feds are operating nearby. Back at home, they are visited by a Food Equity Inspector, eager to ensure that no one has more (or better) food than everyone else.  Later, Paul mentions that the Coalition is sending someone to deal with the airplane.

You can show your appreciation for these ongoing stories in the Siege universe, by buying a virtual coffee on Buy Me A Coffee. Monthly supporters on Patreon and BMAC are getting advanced chapters of Susan's Raid to read. Become a member. Read ahead!

Mic, Brian, and Jeff discuss the 2014 movie Aftermath: an independent production about a group of average folks who gather in a north Texas farmhouse cellar to try to survive the radioactive fallout from a nuclear war. This is another of those Everybody Dies movies. The boys comment on what the writer did well for conveying prepper knowledge, and where he missed the boat. The biggest boat he missed was assuming that fallout stayed at toxic levels for over a month.

Links:

The Movie: Aftermath (2014) Free on YouTube

The FEMA PrepTalk about the reality of fallout and how to protect yourself.

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The final installment in the backstory of Harold Perkins -- the man who had the steel casting expertise to fix that broken locomotive. In this chapter, Red has dropped them off at the woods along the border. They have to travel by night, without lights that passing drones might see. Then, hope that they've stayed on course to meet the people who think they're trading engine parts for a sack of corn.

If you are entertained by these novelettes, you can show your appreciation by buying a virtual coffee on Buy Me A Coffee. Monthly supporters on Patreon and BMAC are getting the chapters of the second novelette -- Susan's Raid.

So much Doom! With inauguration just a short while away, the boys review some of the doom we've been told will befall us all. In a more realistic vein, the threat of terrorists remains, regardless of who sits in the White House. We're told that hacker-terrorists have infiltrated many infrastructure systems. If they strike and take down infrastructure, what is a prepper to do about that? And then, there are winter storms that can take down the grid too, albeit less catastrophically than terrorists, but with greater certainty.

Links:

Mr. Heater "Buddy" portable propane heater — emergency indoor* heat source.

News story: Chinese Hackers in Infrastructure -- Jake Sullivan of Biden White House warns Americans of depth and breadth of CCP hacker infiltration.

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The moment has come. Harold and his family must sneak out of their guarded townhouse and into the secret compartment in James Reddimer's truck. Red manages to involve a guard in restarting the truck as a way of proving his truck was empty. Harold worries about many things as they seem to be traveling no place in particular. The travel authorization provided by Dorn gets them through a checkpoint. Beyond that lie a mile of woods an the New Hampshire border.

If you are entertained by these novelettes, you can show your appreciation by buying a virtual coffee on Buy Me A Coffee. Monthly supporters on Patreon and BMAC are getting the chapters of the second novelette -- Susan's Raid.

Mic, Jeff, and Brian all watched the movie Homestead over Christmas week. This is independent Angel Studios' screenplay based on the book series Black Autumn. Originally planned as a series, the first two episodes became a movie. More episodes to follow, says Angel Studios.

The boys look at prepper lessons to be learned from the film and touch upon some of the thorny issues a well-equipped prepper is likely to face. While the boys can't help but do a few spoilers, the story goes on in later episodes, so there's not ending (yet) to give away.

Links:

Black Autumn Book Series on Amazon.

Angel Studios' website.

Homestead movie trailer

Ready Your Future exclusive email group. (membership is closed at the moment, but you can add your name to the waiting list.

If you are appreciating these prepper fiction episodes, consider becoming a Patron on Patreon, or a monthly member at Buy Me A Coffee.

Casting Dorn's part cannot be put off any longer. Red has a one-shot plan to rescue Harold and his family. While it means escaping to "lawless" New Hampshire, it is better than certain death. Their conversation over the details is masked by the roar of the furnace. Red plans to sneak them out that evening. Dorn, however, orders them to be ready to leave in a half an hour.

If you are entertained by these novelettes, you can show your appreciation by buying a virtual coffee on Buy Me A Coffee. Monthly supporters on Patreon and BMAC are getting the chapters of the second novelette -- Susan's Raid.