• The Colorado School of Clinical Herbalism and what has been happening at Lisa’s school since she took over the school a year ago
• The idea of community around an herbal school and a healing tradition
• Different ways to learn about western herbalism, and how to go about doing this on an individual level:  The value of individual experience in learning herbalism
• Changing the culture of health care in America
• Relating to plants on a personal level when you have an injury or illness:  Experiencing the healing
• Are herbs as powerful as modern pharmaceuticals?  If so, how?
• Do we have the constitutional right to choose our own form(s) of health care?  Is medical licensing effective at all?
• What are some of the major obstacles to changing lifestyle and health in America?
• Can we use plants to help us out with the problem of antibiotic-resistant bacteria?
• How does Lisa’s diverse background make her into a better herbalist?  From folk medicine to organic chemistry?

Don’t miss Part 1 of this podcast. Check it out right here.

To find out more about the Colorado School of Clinical Herbalism, visit their site at:  http://clinicalherbalism.com/

• The Colorado School of Clinical Herbalism and what has been happening at Lisa’s school since she took over the school a year ago
• The idea of community around an herbal school and a healing tradition
• Different ways to learn about western herbalism, and how to go about doing this on an individual level:  The value of individual experience in learning herbalism
• Changing the culture of health care in America
• Relating to plants on a personal level when you have an injury or illness:  Experiencing the healing
• Are herbs as powerful as modern pharmaceuticals?  If so, how?
• Do we have the constitutional right to choose our own form(s) of health care?  Is medical licensing effective at all?
• What are some of the major obstacles to changing lifestyle and health in America?
• Can we use plants to help us out with the problem of antibiotic-resistant bacteria?
• How does Lisa’s diverse background make her into a better herbalist?  From folk medicine to organic chemistry?

Check out Part 2 of this podcast right here

To find out more about the Colorado School of Clinical Herbalism, visit their site at:  http://clinicalherbalism.com/

• Post disaster herbalism in Haiti
• Emergency and Acute-Care Herbalism
• The history of Eclectic Herbalism
• Appalachian herbal medicine
• What kinds of herbs are located in the coastal plains?  Is there enough medicine in this ecosystem to be able to cover all aspects of herbal care?
• The uses of Gelsemium for pain and what kinds of herbal pain management approaches are out there?
• The use of Datura for pain and Thomas’ very interesting experience with its use in Haiti
• The cultural disconnect between the planet, medicine, food and humans
• Western science, energetics and herbalism

Thomas Easley’s site is located at:  www.eclecticherbalist.com

Check out everything new going on at The Human Path!

www.thehumanpath.com

This is an introductory podcast, and one that we hope to continue on a more regular basis, so in this podcast, we learn more about Mykel, to include:

• What is the history behind the Green Beret Survival Manual that Mykel wrote?
• Is it still in print?  Why is it a good book to buy if you want an overall picture of survival?
• What projects does Mykel have going on?
• What products (knives, hats, etc.) does Mykel have out right now?
• What is the latest on his upcoming survival show with Travel Channel?
• Why is land navigation so important and how does it play into the new show with Mykel and his wife?
• What land navigation classes do we have coming up at The Human Path, and why should you be interested in learning and practicing this skill?

Join Mykel and Sam in the future as they discuss more survival topics and skills.

Upcoming Land Navigation course on March 16th

Spring Scout Training Course

• The concept of “civilization” and how we have lost touch with who we are as humans
• The idea behind The Human Path as a school
• The importance of the topic of community as part of any realistic survival training
• Herbal medicine and its place in a post-disaster or remote setting
• Modern medicine as compared to herbal or natural medicine
• Wilderness vs. Urban survival and cummunity sustainability
• Speculation on what might be most likely looming in our future as a species
• What role does our culture play in forming our perception of reality?

Find out what’s going on at The Human Path!Our class calendar

Facebook page

Herbal tooth sticks combine a tooth powder with essential oil and small twigs, in order to fully clean the teeth. They work great in the outdoors (camping, backpacking, hiking, etc.) but also can be used at home daily as part of your tooth care. Sam reviews the types of wood or plants you can use, the size/dimensions, the types of herbs, his favorite herbal tooth-powder formula, how to combine the herbs and essential oils, how to use the tooth sticks, and other herbs that can be used for dental and gum health. This is a short video on this subject that is normally a 90-minute or 2-hour class (and could be much longer). For more information on online or on-site herbalism courses in Austin and San Antonio, visit the website at thehumanpath.com

Check out the video here.

Upcoming Herbal Medcine Classes in San Antonio and Austin

Herbal Medic Fundamentals: Level 1. 5 Weekend Intensives.  Begins 2/16,17. San Antonio. Online details here.

Spring Session: Austin, Monday and Wednesday evenings. 7 Weeks.  Begins March 5th. Online details here.

Spring Session: San Antonio, Tuesday and Thursday evenings. 7 Weeks.  Begins March 5th. Online details here.

The Wilderness First Aid 16-hr. certification. March 2/3. San Antonio, online details here.

Herbs for Energy and Fatigue. Feb. 3rd. San Antonio, online sign up here.

Herbal Studies, Primitive Skills Day and Potluck, Feb. 24th. San Antonio, online details here.

The scout is the eyes and the ears of a team.  However, there is a lot more to it than just that.  In this episode Sam talks about questions and subjects such as:

• What does it mean to say that the scout is related to the realm of the “mind?”  What exactly is the mind and how does it relate to being a scout?
• What kinds of skills does a scout learn in the level 1 course?
• What are some of the skills taught in some of the elective/peripheral scout classes?
• What are the minimum physical conditioning requirements to enter the Level 1 scout course?
• Why is land navigation and orienteering off of a map and compass so important for scout?
• What are some of the different types of OpFor (opposing forces) exercises and scout games do you get to take part in during scenarios?
• What are the real-world applications of scout?  How does scout training apply to being an advance party for post-disaster or remote-location work for Herbal Medics?

Next up is the 2013 Urban Scout Intensive Program. This begins on June 8th. For information, visit the website to learn more about the urban scout program.

2013 Scout Elective Classes

Scout Awareness, Aug. 25th, 2013. Information and sign up.

Scout Caches,  Aug. 11th, 2013. Information and sign up.

Scout Prepper, Aug. 18th, 2013. Information and sign up.

The Combat Medic fulfills a role that is vital to the real-world mission of Herbal Medics.  In todays discussion, Sam addresses topics and questions such as:

• What is the difference between “Combat Medic” and “Herbal Medic”
• Why are self-defense and tactics a core component of the Combat Medic Specialty, along with Herbal Medicine and Wilderness First Aid?
• what does it mean that the Combat Medic is based off of the relationship between us and our bodies?
• How can understanding martial arts help a person become a better healer?
• There are many roles that a Combat Medic plays on a team - Herbal Medic, Security, Resource Management, Health Care Oversight, Herbal Pharmacy, to name some of the most important ones.  What are these roles and how do they play a part in the mission of Herbal Medics?
• What are the prerequisites to take the Level 1 Combat Medic classes?  What electives/peripheral classes?

Combat Medic courses are in motion!

January 5th: Herbal Sports Medicine,  Fitness, Chi Kung and Nutrition (no pre-requisite needed)

January 6th: Dealing With Infection Using Only Herbs (no pre-requisite needed)

January 11th: Herbal Clinic, for members

January 12-13th: Wilderness First Aid Certification, 16 hr. course. (no pre-requisistes needed)

Winter 2013 Schedule

He discusses and answers questions such as:

• Where does the concept of the Hunter Gatherer come from, and why is it such an important aspect of any survival training?
• What specific skills can you look forward to learning in the Level 1 Hunter Gatherer course as well as all of the myriad of Hunter Gatherer electives?
• Is the Level 1 Hunter Gatherer course difficult?
• What is the Level 1 Hunter Gatherer test like?
• What can you expect from the Level 2 core courses in any specialty and how does that work?
• How can learning Hunter Gatherer skills make you better at survival in general?
• Why do we have different instructors for each specialty and how does that make the school more intense and create a richer learning environment?
• What is the difference in food and nutrition between food that grows wild off the land vs. domestic food in our grocery stores, and how does that affect students in the Hunter Gatherer core course?

The Hunter/Gatherer course, beginning January 5/6th, 2013.

The Wilderness Tracking Certification Program, beginning January 12th, 2013.

The full Winter 2013 Class Calendar

For more information about the school, classes and programs, visit the website at www.thehumanpath.com.

He addresses many of the questions that people have about how the program is structured at The Human Path, to include:

• What are the differences between core classes and peripheral or elective classes?
• What are the 4 paths or specialties that a person can follow within the core curriculum?
• What specific things do students learn in each of the specialties?
• What makes The Human Path so different from other survival schools?
• How does learning these skills make a difference in day-to-day life?
• What is the difference between Urban and Primitive tracks of instruction?
• What are the “Four A’s” of survival that are a part of the core curriculum?
• How does a student move up from level 1 to level 2 in a specialty?
• How are concepts like teamwork, leadership and community taught as part of the classes?

The next Urban Core Basic class is January 25 - 27th, 2013.

Check out the Winter 2013 schedule for the next 2-3 months!

Sam answers questions such as:

• What kinds of learning experiences were developed throughout 2012 and what can we look forward to in 2013?
• How has the breadth of the curriculum has been defined over the past few years at The Human Path? What exactly does that breadth of information include?
• How have The Human Path instructors evolved with the school?
• Why is it necessary to implement testing and selection procedures for higher level classes and real-world teams?  What might that testing procedure look like, and at what point in the different levels will we see it?
• As we focus in the 4 areas of our curriculum delivery - Lecture, Hands-on, Scenario and Real-world missions – how does this all merge to create an ideal learning and even life-changing environment?
• How did Nicaragua figure into learning experience during 2012, and what’s next?
• What can we expect to see in 2013 in regards to real-world missions and new classes?

Our new calendar for 2013 is up online here.

He addresses questions such as:

• How is West Nile Virus transmitted?
• What are the symptoms of West Nile Virus?
• What percentage of people get these symptoms?
• At what point is West Nile Virus dangerous enough to be life threatening?
• What medicinal herbs can be used to help our bodies heal quickly and eliminate this virus?
• What are the organ systems we are most concerned with helping with herbs to get rid of a West Nile Virus infection?
• What methodology can you use in coming up with an effective herbal formula for West Nile Virus?

To learn more about Herbology and working with field herbal medicine, check out the upcoming fall course, The Herbal Medic.

Classes will begin in both the San Antonio and Austin area the week of September 10th.

• What are “loanwords” and how can you use these to maximize your vocabulary very quickly?
• What is a way to get past having to memorize verb conjugations and tenses?
• What is the structure of language in general, and how is it different to learn as an adult vs. as a child?
• What’s wrong with some of the language learning DVD’s and CD’s that are on the market?  How are some of them getting away with false advertising?
• What are the most important types of words to learn first in order to maximize your ability to speak and understand as quickly as possible?
• What is one daily drill you can do that will absolutely skyrocket your ability to speak a foreign language?
• Does grammar matter?
• Is there a difference learning a foreign language if you already speak 2 languages, and have learned one of them as an adult?

For another resource on learning language quickly, check out my good friend Mykel Hawke’s book, “The Quick and Dirty Guide to Learning Languages Fast”

He covers topics such as:

• How can we prepare our own medicinal gardens to avoid falling prey to this kind of ignorance?
• What are some of the different types of urban camouflage gardening (Guerilla Gardening)?
• What are the different height levels and how can we create a medicinal garden in the front yard that uses this to help fit the garden in with HOA and municipal idiot-regulations?
• What are some very good medicinal plants that grow as ground cover and can replace a yard?
• What are some very good medicinal plants that are high ground cover, low-herbaceous level?
• What are some good medicinal herbaceous plants and how can we fit that into our yard in a way that doesn’t stand out?
• What is the concept behind forest gardening and how can that help us be more prepared?
• What is the advantage of using local plants?

To learn more about using medicinal plants that you can grow, as well as harvest locally in the wild, sign up for the next Herbology Level 1 class here

Related Items:

More information about the incident discussed in this podcast about the mowed-down garden, news report

Companion Article, ‘On Your Side of the Fence’

Upcoming class in Austin, TX: ‘Cooking With Wild Edibles’, July 26th

• herbs to stimulate appetite and milk production in rabbits
• what is wool-block and how can you easily prevent it with simple herbs
• what is the best tonic herb for rabbits
• garlic as a treatment for pinworms or roundworms and a clever way to give it to rabbits that don’t like it
• the difference in life-span between a wild and domesticated rabbit
• what is a great uterine tonic herb for pregnant doe later in her gestation?
• rosemary, catnip and some geranium: how they work as a natural pest control on the cages
• how you can use canned 100% pumpkin to ease gut blockages
• how to keep rabbits cool in high summer heat

Learn more about herbs for humans at the next herbology level 1 class here.

Also, check out our earlier podcast on rabbitry and creating your own sustainable meat food source, Episode #100, The Self Sustaining Food.

Episode # 116: The Rabbit and The Herb (part one).

• Nutrients that are important for rabbits to give them a more natural diet
• Immune boosting with apple cider vinegar, and how this helps keep them from getting sick
• How to use echinacea and what it does for them
• Dried or fresh, which is better?
• Ear mite treatment using natural oils and herbs
• Eye washes for rabbit eye infections
• How normal “rabbit feed” can cause gastric problems in the rabbits
• Herbs to help rabbit digestion and counteract some of the problems called by pellets
• Grasses vs. pellets: How do you prepare grasses and herbs for their diet?
• Herbs for rabbit diarrhea and to improve digestive issues

Learn more about herbs for humans at the next herbology level 1 class here.

Also, check out our earlier podcast on rabbitry and creating your own sustainable meat food source, Episode #100, The Self Sustaining Food.

Sam discusses the following concepts: - What are useful herbs for a UTI and how does each one work? - What concepts are valuable to bear in mind when working with a UTI using herbs? - Can a UTI be treated with herbs alone? - How effective are these herbs, and which ones would you use together? - What other differences are there when treating an acute illness with herbs vs. standard (allopathic) care? - Why are herbs effective and what does that mean for our bodies?

To learn more about herbology, sign up for the upcoming level 1 herbology course in July or make sure you are on our mailing list so that you can be notified when the online version of the level 1 herbology course is available this summer.

Mark and Sam discuss topics including:

• What do mud/obstacle races like “The Spartan Race” calculate into this kind of training?
• What kind of training test will be involved with the Level 1 Combat Medic?
• Where do kicks fit into street fighting?
• How important is awareness as a martial arts skill?

Mark’s website:  http://extremeselfprotection.com/ Facebook:  http://www.facebook.com/hatmakercombatsports

Make sure you listen to Part 1 if you missed it! Episode 113: Training Out of Your Comfort Zone.

Mark and Sam discuss topics include:

• Mark’s journey across the different aspects of fighting in western martial arts
• How Historical boxing and old-school pugulism and catch-wrestling fit into fighting styles
• How much of the boxing and wrestling base gets thrown out of the window when it comes down to real adrenaline training
• What are the “Outer Limits” drills and how does disorientation fit into adrenaline and real street fighting drills?
• When is the “Outer Limits” DVD coming out (on Paladin Press)?
• How can people train to take away their comfort zone to constantly learn and “stress-inoculize” themselves for a street encounter?
• Randomness in a fight, and the book  “The Black Swan” by Nassim Taleb
• The Mixed Martial Arts continuum of “Conditioning, Positioning, Striking and Submission” and how those apply to a street fight?
• How does submission and grappling training fit into the concept of realistic self-defense practice?
• What do mud/obstacle races like “The Spartan Race” calculate into this kind of training?

The second part of this podcast will be released tomorrow. Don’t miss it!

Mark’s website:  http://extremeselfprotection.com/ Facebook:  http://www.facebook.com/hatmakercombatsports

Forest gardening is a great way to grow both food and medicine in a space and labor-efficient environment.  Sam talks about:

• Why a forest garden is a great idea for preppers
• What are the different layers of a forest garden?
• How can you get started on a forest garden even if you don’t have any canopy trees?
• How much room does a forest garden take up?
• What are the advantages of food and medicine grown in a forest garden?
• What are some of the examples of food and medicine that Sam has growing in his own forest garden?

To learn more about plant medicine, make sure you are on the mailing list for notification as our herbology level 1 online class comes out over the next few weeks…

Sam discusses:

• Why it helps to think critically, even while watching fictional TV or Movies
• What we can learn from The Walking Dead in regards to basic self defense concepts
• What some of the different styles of leadership can do to group dynamics
• How to think about leadership with a group of random people
• If you have to fight to survive, then you have to discard false notions of anything other than fighting to win
• How important it is to think outside the box in a fight or a war

The Zombie Apocalypse is coming up in about 7 months.  You must have taken the Urban or Primitive Core Basic in order to participate in the Zombie Apocalypse.  Sign up now for the UCB or PCB.

May 2012 Urban Core Basic, Part 1 May 4 - 6th,  and Part 2, June 1 - 3rd.

September Urban Core Basic, 5-Day Intensive: September 17 - 21st.

September 2012 Primitive Core Basic, Part 1 September 7 - 9th and Part 2, October 5 - 7th.

Today, Sam talks about:

• What “intentional community” means
• What are 3 different levels of community?
• How do you go about finding and creating community based on those levels?
• How does stress affect community?
• What are the gathering points of community? The “watering holes?”
• How does The Human Path try to create community and put stress on people to help them come together?
• What are some of the things you should think about when choosing a school to learn skills (of any sort) at, and how does that relate to community for you?

There are 2 Primitive Core Basics and 2 Urban Core Basics still to be offered in 2012.  Here are links to them:

May 2012 Urban Core Basic, Part 1 May 4 - 6th,  and Part 2, June 1 - 3rd.

September Urban Core Basic, 5-Day Intensive: September 17 - 21st.

September 2012 Primitive Core Basic, Part 1 September 7 - 9th and Part 2, October 5 - 7th.

• The advantages of taking a PDC online vs. on-site
• What to look for when finding a PDC course to take
• How much to expect to spend on a PDC course.
• How does permaculture fit into preparedness and the “prepper” lifestyle?
• What are some ways that a person can get started on their own with permaculture concepts aroung the house and garden?
• What are the underlying fundamentals of permaculture, and why is it important?
• How can a person get started with the Permaculture Education Center if they want to get their PDC online?  How long does it take?

You can check out more about online permaculture design certification by going to the Permaculture Education Center website

You can also sign up to learn about growing, wildcrafting and using medicinal plants by attending the Herbology Level 1 class at The Human Path here: online registration

The Online Permaculture Education Center’s mission is to provide Permaculture education while promoting and demonstrating sustainable living techniques to the world.

Main Instructors: Alan Enzo, Ph.D., M.B.A.

Dr. Enzo (also known as “Enzo”) is an award-winning researcher and international consultant in Ecological Economics and Ecological Design (Permaculture). He is a registered Instructor and Consultant with the Permaculture Research Institute in Australia. He earned a Ph.D. in Management (specialization in Ecological Economics), and an M.B.A. in Sustainable Business from Tennessee State University. He is passionate about sustainable systems research, alternative local economic systems, natural building, organic food production, and helping students and clients start their own small green businesses.

Jessica Enzo, B.A.

Jessica Enzo is a Permaculture co-teacher and consultant, and is also a certified Health Coach specializing in Integrative Nutrition. Jessica has a love of natural landscapes and an eye for patterns and appropriate design. Her passion and desire is to demonstrate and share her love of Permaculture and its amazing principles with as many people as possible.

The Enzo’s are currently working to create a Permaculture Demonstration site and Education Center in Asheville, North Carolina. Alan and Jessica are respected teachers and consultants in the region, and are best known for designing the new Permaculture Demonstration site at the Mother Earth News Ecovillage near Asheville, N.C. This famous ecovillage was one of the first established in the United States. In addition to teaching and consulting, the Enzo’s work with other Permaculture and Sustainability professionals to help re-localize economic activity and organic food production, while creating a network of small local green businesses in the Southern Appalachian Mountains Bioregion (Katuah).

In 2011, Alan and Jessica Enzo, Tom Brody, Ian Booth, Galen Hull, Raoul Russell, and several other leading Permaculture teachers created a new online PDC curriculum and started PermacultureEducation.com. The site is now managed by the Ecological Education Association - a collective of local Permaculture teachers and consultants in Southeast U.S.

Sam and listener Zoe discuss:

• what led her family to try dumpster diving and the negative stigma that they had to overcome in order to try it out
• the movie ‘Dive’ that changed their attitude about the practice of dumpster diving
• the volume of fresh organic food being thrown away and the great variety of high-end healthy food
• how they share with friends and neighbors when they collect more than they need
• how they were able to stock up for their family of 5 for a full year after 2 months of dumpster diving
• store dumpsters may often be full (and locked) even though stores claim to donate everything to charities and shelters
• the dangers to note and precautions that divers must take before going out
• the best times to go and where
• the idea of a co-op for divers to share and distribute collected food to make sure perfectly good food doesn’t just got tossed
• making extra cash by selling cast-off items
• dumpster diving as a growing and thriving sub-culture, sometimes called ‘freegans’
• learning about food safety

Waste and over-consumption are a huge problem with our country’s landfills being packed with things that can either be consumed, re-used or re-purposed.  When thousands of pounds of good food are being thrown out, natural resources continue to be depleted.

Learn how to sharpen your urban awareness and survival skills. See how to be a part of the eco-solution and not part of the problem.

Upcoming Urban Core Basic courses begin in May. Online registration and details.

http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/channel/doomsday-preppers/

Sam gives his own feedback on the preppers that were featured in this show, as well as some of the concepts involved in their method of prepping.  Aside from talking about the details of each individual prepper and some various feedback on their plans, he also talks about:

• bird alarms as a method of early warning in a rural environment
• lifestyle adjustments for the first family of primitive skills enthusiasts for prepping
• over-population as a possible disaster scenario and why it works well
• firearms’ role in survival
• living off the ‘fat of the land’
• surviving in a bunker: what happens when they have to inevitably emerge from the bunker?
• changing a culture of ‘distraction’ to ensure a positive survival of the species
• security: humans vs. machinery
• prepping for martial law: what this means
• water: what is the bare minimum per person needed, and how much for comfort?
• what is to be gained through sniper tactics in a survival situation?
• the difference between these prepper’s everyday lifestyle compared to what they are prepping for

There are two survival courses coming up that deal specifically with survival in all types of situations.

See the online schedule for:

The Primitive Core Basic: 5-Day Intensive, March 12 - 16th, online registration

The Urban Core Basic: Part one, May 4 - 6th, online registration

Sam and Kelly go over:

• using grain bins, railroad box cars and school buses as alternative house structures and how well they work
• how living in a smaller home makes a person more eco-conscious and less consumer-oriented
• using passive solar cooling, heating and lighting by utilizing a sensitive design
• building underground to use less energy
• green rooftops and earth berms to create the same effect
• methods of renewable energy
• benefits of using natural and local building materials
• growing and storing food in naturally cooled environments

Check out the first half of this podcast: Episode #104: Dumpter Diving For A House

	Kelly Hart is the founder and host of www.greenhomebuilding.com , www.dreamgreenhomes.com and www.earthbagbuilding.com, and has been involved with green building concepts for much of his life. Kelly spent many years as a professional remodeler, during which time he became acquainted with many of the pitfalls of conventional construction.
Kelly is knowledgeable about both simple design concepts and more complex technological aspects of home building that enhance sustainable living. He has even designed and built a solar-electric car that he drove around his neighborhood. Kelly, and his wife Zana, lived for many years in an earthbag/papercrete home that he designed and built.

Sam and Kelly discuss:

• what are some materials that can be re-used from other projects
• the best places you never thought of to find salvaged supplies for free or practically nothing
• why should you look locally for your supplies instead of a big box store?
• earthships vs. earthbag structures
• a little bit about the construction process behind earthbags
• inventive re-purposing ideas for plastic and glass bottles
• dealing with county inspectors and codes when building in this fashion

Don’t miss tomorrow’s second part to this podcast when Kelly talks about some really different approaches to eco-building!

	Kelly Hart is the founder and host of www.greenhomebuilding.com , www.dreamgreenhomes.com and www.earthbagbuilding.com, and has been involved with green building concepts for much of his life. Kelly spent many years as a professional remodeler, during which time he became acquainted with many of the pitfalls of conventional construction.
Kelly is knowledgeable about both simple design concepts and more complex technological aspects of home building that enhance sustainable living. He has even designed and built a solar-electric car that he drove around his neighborhood. Kelly, and his wife Zana, lived for many years in an earthbag/papercrete home that he designed and built.

http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/channel/doomsday-preppers/

Sam gives his own feedback on the preppers that were featured in this show, as well as some of the concepts involved in their method of prepping.  Aside from talking about the details of each individual prepper and some various feedback on their plans, he also talks about:

• The general 2 main types of preppers
• Gear vs. Skills
• Prepping in a huge urban area like NYC, and bugging in
• Security vs. Food
• The “stereotypical” prepper and where that idea will lead us
• The concepts behind “prepping” at The Human Path

There are still a few slots open in the Urban Core Basic, where you can learn, practice and apply preparedness concepts in hands-on and scenario-based environments - Online calendar and registration

• How do you teach the body and brain to react to panic?
• What is the primal flinch or survival reflex, and how can that help us?
• What is Hick’s Law and how do we get the most out of our hard-wired survival mechanism during training for a violent street encounter?
• What is “stress inoculation” and how does that play a role in our response mechanism in a fight?
• How do you practice fighting in a way that forces your body to always know intuitively where its balance point is?
• Why should you avoid hitting someone with your fists?
• Where does ground-fighting and grappling figure into a street fight?
• Why is it important to learn to fight in small, claustrophobic spaces?

Learn more about Tony Blauer’s training programs, calendar of classes, unique training gear and more at his website:

Tony and Sam talk about:

• How long Tony has been teaching hand-to-hand combatives, how he started in martial arts and what the route was that took him to his no-nonsense, adrenaline-based form of street self-defense today
• What is the difference between training for street/realistic scenarios and studying a traditional martial art?
• Can you learn to fight by moving from style to style in your own martial arts training?
• What is the difference between a “Subject Matter Expert” and a “Substance Matter Expert”
• What is “experiential learning” and how can it help your training?  How does this relate to a violent encounter?
• Why is hand-to-hand combat the most important fight situation to train for?  Why is it the one situation you can have control over the outcome the highest percentage of the time?
• How does hand-to-hand fighting relate to preparedness?
• How does stress-inoculation and attitude training  relate to who will win a real fight or violent encounter?
• When does it make sense to protect more than just your life (property, etc) and defend yourself?

Learn more about Tony Blauer’s training programs, calendar of classes, unique training gear and more at his website: Tony Blauer is founder and CEO of BLAUER TACTICAL CONFRONTATION MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS©. Mr. Blauer has pioneered research and training methodologies that have influenced and inspired martial art & combative systems around the world.

His company, BLAUER TACTICAL SYSTEMS (BTS) is now one of the world’s leading consulting firms specializing in research & development of combative training & equipment for the military, law enforcement and self-defense communities. BTS has taught key performance enhancement, fear management, and combatives based on S.P.E.A.R. System research to military, law enforcement and civilian personnel since 1988. WEB-SITE: www.blauertactical.com FACEBOOK: facebook.com/TonyBlauer.SpearSystem TWITTER http://twitter.com/TonyBlauer TRAINING: Online registration PRODUCTS: www.blauerspear.com

Sam and Rick discuss:

• Rabbits as a meat source
• How to get started
• What a beginner might need
• Why are rabbits a good option compared to other livestock?
• Breeds of rabbits
• Wild vs. domestic
• Rabbit manure as compost
• Keeping bucks separate from females

Rick has an excellent Facebook page and online blog resource at www.riseandshinerabbitry.wordpress.com.

Rick Worden of Rise and Shine Rabbitry:  I have been raising rabbits for 30 + years.  My passion is promoting rabbits for homestead use:  meat, fur, manure and all that goes with those 3.  I grow as much of our own food as possibly canning , drying, and freezing it, and buying local what I can not produce.

Additional Reading Resources

Raising Rabbits the Modern Way by Ann Kanable

Storey’s Guide to Raising Rabbits, 4th Edition by Bob Bennett

Rabbit Production by Peter R Cheeke

Related Rabbitry Podcasts:

Episode #116: The Rabbit and The Herb

• The idea behind this series and how it can be educational – even if it is also “Hollywood”
• The best and the worst of this series
• The importance of learning to “live like you prep”
• Why you are only as strong as your weakest, figurative “link” when you prep
• How an illusion of what you might think will happen in a disaster situation can leave you unprepared

The National Geographic channel is airing the Doomsday Preppers series weekly:

http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/channel/doomsday-preppers/

Learn urban and wilderness survival skills at The Human Path Wilderness Survival - online registration

Urban Survival – online calendar of classes

Herbology & Plant Medicine: online calendar of classes

Sam and Tim discuss:

• how to turn a crisis situation around into a positive change
• urban sustainability solutions
• life on the homestead: working with a generator for larger energy needs
• plans for a DC refrigerator out of a top-door freezer
• the winter garden and permaculture setup as part of the homestead
• how dividing the labor and working together is the missing element to success for many
• how many people Tim envisions is about right to meet the needs of an intentional community
• security concerns in a post-disaster situation on a homestead
• how being far off the beaten path helped to protect their supplies while the building process was in progress

Listen to the first part of this podcast: Episode 097: The Intentional Homestead

Tim Bennett and Rebecca Nantz and their three children were headed for success as house flippers. Then the bubble popped. They became a paycheck to paycheck family. They knew they could push themselves, continue treading the stress of the monthly bills, and make it another 20 years. But they decided “Instead of struggling, Let’s have an adventure!” So they sold or gave away most of their material “stuff” and set up a camp in the North Georgia mountains where they began to build an off grid, reciprocal roof, earth bermed home. They used round wood timbers, cob, local stone, recycled materials, and alternative building techniques.

Their EarthinMind website

The EarthinMind Facebook page

Recommended reading resources:

The Fifty Dollar and Up Underground House Book by Mike Ohler

Gaia’s Garden, Second Edition: A Guide To Home-Scale Permaculture by Toby Hemingway

The Self-sufficient Life and How to Live It by John Seymour

Back to Basics: How to Learn and Enjoy Traditional American Skills (Second Edition)

Sam and Tim discuss:

• what inspired Tim and where he got some of his off-the-grid building ideas
• the friend that encouraged Tim’s family to build the home as part of an intentional community
• what does this community have built so far and what are they planning?
• what is a recipricol roof
• challenges to working with the cob method of green building
• how the family needed to change their energy usage after installing the solar energy system
• which appliances drain the most energy
• the cost of doing a home like this and the time involved
• how Tim learned to balance family, job, time and other resources to make this project happen
• some valuable skills and lessons his kids got out of this experience
• how to integrate children and family into a project like this and have it give long-lasting benefits

We will continue the 2nd part of this podcast tomorrow!

Tim Bennett and Rebecca Nantz and their three children were headed for success as house flippers. Then the bubble popped. They became a paycheck to paycheck family. They knew they could push themselves, continue treading the stress of the monthly bills, and make it another 20 years. But they decided “Instead of struggling, Let’s have an adventure!” So they sold or gave away most of their material “stuff” and set up a camp in the North Georgia mountains where they began to build an off grid, reciprocal roof, earth bermed home. They used round wood timbers, cob, local stone, recycled materials, and alternative building techniques.

Their EarthinMind website

The EarthinMind Facebook page

Recommended reading resources:

The Fifty Dollar and Up Underground House Book by Mike Ohler

Gaia’s Garden, Second Edition: A Guide To Home-Scale Permaculture by Toby Hemingway

The Self-sufficient Life and How to Live It by John Seymour

Back to Basics: How to Learn and Enjoy Traditional American Skills (Second Edition)

• Which is more important – Skills or Gear?
• How do you go about working on skills on a regular basis?
• Why is fitness a crucial skill?
• What makes community more important than just flying solo as a prepper?
• How does The Human Path integrate skills with community?
• What is a decent fitness test you can give yourself right now?

For more information on upcoming classes at The Human Path, visit the online calendar

For more resources on any of these topics, visit Treehugger Survival at: www.treehuggersurvival.com

• Lisa’s personal journey with herbalism and what led her to write her book
• The merging of vitalism and reductionism when studying plant medicine
• The human relationship with the planet earth, and how this relates to cultural health
• How to change our cultural awareness of nature and the planet, and why this is so important in America
• Individual vs. Species intelligence and the human condition
• Plant-Human interaction on a micro and macro level
• The history and vision of North American Institute of Medical Herbalism (NAIMH)
• What is the “non-dairy challenge” and could it help with many health issues such as Multiple Sclerosis?
• What is human intuition and how does it relate to understanding plant medicine?
• What is “vitalism?”

To find out more about Lisa’s book please visit http://www.herbalconstituents.com/home.html

To find out more about the instructional programs at NAIMH please visit http://naimh.com/

To sign up for The Human Path herbalism classes, start with the Level 1 Herbology course here

• What is Lisa’s book about and why is it necessary to learn about medicinal plants at a bio-chemical level?
• How does a bio-chemical approach to herbalism complement with a vitalistic approach to plant medicine?
• How does intuition play a role in plant medicine?  How does reductionism play a role?
• How has the study of plant medicine evolved over the past 50 years? Is there a positive synergy achieved in combining different paradigms of healing?
• Can herbal treatments be as potent and effective as allopathic (western mainstream) treatments, even for serious conditions and injuries?
• How did Lisa get into herbalism?
• How do plants respond to human (social) culture?

Founded in 2003, the North American Institute of Medical Herbalism offers introductory, advanced, and clinical education in medical herbalism and nutrition in the Vitalist tradition. We offer classroom, clinical, field training, and distance learning formats. We are approved and regulated by the Colorado Department of Higher Education, Private Occupational School Board. Our faculty members are certified herbalists with professional clinical experience and strong backgrounds in clinical nutrition. Each also has a professional background in education.
Lisa Ganora has been a traditional herbalist for more than 25 years and is also an expert on the properties of phytochemical constituents in medicinal foods and herbs. Lisa, who earned her biology degree with highest honors from the University of North Carolina, is currently the Adjunct Professor of Pharmacognosy at the Southwest College of Naturopathic Medicine and will become the Director of the North American Institute of Medical Herbalism in June, 2012. She is the author of the popular website, HerbalConstituents.com, several distance-learning courses, numerous visual curriculum materials, and the textbook Herbal Constituents.  As a teacher, Lisa combines traditional wisdom and hands-on experience with easily accessible science for a uniquely holistic learning experience.
To find out more about Lisa’s book please visit http://www.herbalconstituents.com/home.html To find out more about the instructional programs at NAIMH please visit http://naimh.com/ To sign up for The Human Path herbalism classes, start with the Level 1 Herbology course here

• the purpose of the Vajra Azaya group, where they are located and the goals of these communities
• the East Austin community is breaking ground on 3 octadome living structures, a community center and surrounding produce gardens
• the Bastrop project which will include 4 to 5 living structures, a workshop, healing hut, gardens and accompanying overhead apartments
• how a dream inspired the quest to build self sustaining communities
• hugulkultur - what it is and what they are using it for
• current experiments underway with green engineering techniques: winter sowing, raised garden beds, tinfoil radios, clay pot fridges, and more
• learning how to design things that work without electricity
• the February workshops on welding and building earth bricks
• the February/March upcoming workshops on gardening topics from permaculture to aquaponics to wicking beds.

More about Vajra Azaya:  Vajra Azaya was created as a non-profit entity to build self-reliant communities that include capacity for food, housing, community, and economic development.  Vajra Azaya assists with the development of these communities while also providing educational opportunities for the public in the building methods and technologies used so that others can replicate our efforts.

To link for more information about Vajra Azaya:  www.vajraazaya.org

To get involved in upcoming projects with affiliated communities join the meetup.com group at:  http://www.meetup.com/Vajra-Azaya/

By using the 3 A’s of survival, awareness, adaptability and attitude, and fully preparing for the worst case scenario; a bad situation can be dealt with more adeptly.

Listen to today’s podcast for more.

Yesterday’s podcast: Episode 091: Snowbound.

Don’t be caught unprepared.  Learn your skills.

Primitive Core Basic training, 5 Day Intensive,  March 12 - 16th, online registration

Wilderness First Aid Certification, 16-hour training, April 28- 29th, online registration

Here is the scenario: It is 1 pm.  You are traveling with two other family members in an intense blizzard.  After driving on a back road in a mountain area of the Cascade Mountains in your 2-wheel drive car, it becomes stuck on the road and can not move forward or back.  Here are the items you have with you:

1/4 tank of gas, a spare tire, a tire rod, a liter of water, 2 granola bars and a ziploc bag of trail mix.  There is a small amount of paper trash on the floor of the car.  All three of you have cell phones, but all the batteries are low.  There is no cell phone reception where you have become stuck and there is one phone charger in the car.    You are all wearing 2 layers: cotton tshirts with a fleece sweatshirt and one with a cotton sweatshirt, jeans, cotton socks and tennis shoes.

The blizzard is anticipated to last at least one more day, but you are on a rural backroad which may not attract attention for several days.  You don’t know the rate that the snow is falling, but in the 30 minutes that you have been stuck, you realize that you can no longer see the dirt road ahead anymore and the car’s tire tracks behind are gone.

What action do you take to keep yourself and your family members safe?

Post a comment on this podcast and we will give a reply by the end of the day.

Up tomorrow:  What happens next.

Learn to protect yourself with limited resources:  Primitive Core Basic training, 5 Day Intensive,  March 12 - 16th, online registration

• Why suturing a laceration in the field is irresponsible and shouldn’t even be considered as an option
• What are the bare necessities needed to deal with field sanitation?
• What other natural options outside of soap exist to keep clean?
• What are some of the top anti-infective herbs for external wounds?
• What herbs help promote tissue-healing as well as being anti-infective?
• How do you use herbs externally and why is this better than the idea of suturing or closing a wound?
• How is charcoal useful as an anti-infective?

If you are interested in learning more about herbs, consider taking the level 1 herbology course to learn a basic set of herbs (material medica) and their use, as well as hands-on experience learning to make preparations like tinctures, salves, poultices, cough syrups, etc.

Level 1 Herbology: Sign up online here

Wilderness First Aid Certification, new course listing

In this podcast, Sam discusses:

• General common-sense topics of preparedness for pets
• Common things to think about in a bugout situation if you have dogs
• What is the most important thing you can do to prep with your dog(s)?
• What is the difference between being a dog-owner and being a pack alpha?
• How can you work with your dog(s) to achieve a harmonious pack that will go where you go?
• If you have no control over your dog other than with a leash, is the dog a help or a liability to you in a disaster situation?

• What is necessary to set up your own aquaponics system?
• How much does it cost to get started on your own homestead?
• How much are the homestead lots selling for in the off-grid community that Biotechture is teaching and assisting with (south of Tyler on a lake)?
• Should you be concerned with local/county building codes when building off the grid?  If so, what’s the best way to deal with them?
• What is a “ferro dome” and why is that an easy, strong and efficient roofing solution when combined with earthships?
• How much does it cost to build an earthship and how much work is it?
• What is the training class opportunity that Biotechture Training is offering – which is almost a free way to experience building an earthship, or have free labor for your own earthship?
• What is a vertical-axis turbine wind generator vs. a horizontal axis turbine?  Why is this simper, cheaper and easier?
• How is a washing machine motor superior for DC power?
• How can you start preparing right now to eventually get yourself off the grid and work within a small, localized economy?

Visit Biotechturetraining.com for more information on upcoming homesteading, aquaponics and other classes!

Biotechture Training.

We are a non-profit organization. Our mission is to teach, as many people as are willing to learn, how to live sustainably, because no one should have to pay a cost just for living. To build Earthships which are off-grid, self-sustained homes that provide not only for all the basic human needs of shelter, food, water, and power; but also needs of comfort, safety, technology, and abundance. An Earthship can provide all that using technologies and resources available today. Earthships are radically sustainable buildings made with recycled materials. Earthships can be built in any part of the world, in any climate and still provide solar power, wind power, catchwater, contained sewage treatment and sustainable food production through aquaponics farming.

On Monday, we will continue the second half of this podcast with a discussion between Mark and Sam about Aquaponics as part of the self-sustainability model.

Related Resources

Biotechturetraining.com website

Biotechture Facebook page

• What is the key to successful sustainability and survival?
• What is the most important aspect of building an earthship?
• How the training and tuition figure into building earthship homes for participating students
• How much it costs to build an earthship
• What is the most untapped resource on the planet now?
• An explanation of the new earthship designs and how they are different and improved
• Brief explanation of how multiple systems: thermo-mass rocket heaters, solar and wind power systems, play in important role in the Biotechture earthship building model
• Upcoming 2- week Aquaponics course

Biotechture Training.

We are a non-profit organization. Our mission is to teach, as many people as are willing to learn, how to live sustainably, because no one should have to pay a cost just for living. To build Earthships which are off-grid, self-sustained homes that provide not only for all the basic human needs of shelter, food, water, and power; but also needs of comfort, safety, technology, and abundance. An Earthship can provide all that using technologies and resources available today. Earthships are radically sustainable buildings made with recycled materials. Earthships can be built in any part of the world, in any climate and still provide solar power, wind power, catchwater, contained sewage treatment and sustainable food production through aquaponics farming.

On Monday, we will continue the second half of this podcast with a discussion between Mark and Sam about Aquaponics as part of the self-sustainability model.

Related Resources

Biotechturetraining.com website

Biotechture Facebook page

• What is the Urban Core Basic and how does it differ from the Primitive Core Basic?
• Is there overlap between the two courses?
• What are the core courses vs. peripheral courses in The Human Path curriculum?
• How do Food, Water, Shelter, Fire and Security fit together in an urban environment?
• What are some of the hands-on exercises that students have to do in the Urban Core Basic?
• What kinds of subjects and scenarios will be run in the part 2 of the Urban Core Basic coming up in about 4 weeks?
• Can a person jump into Part 2 and finish Part 1 later?
• How many hours are the Core Basics, and why are they split up in 2 parts sometimes and in 1 long course other times?

Upcoming Related Courses

Urban Core, Part 2: Feb. 24 - 26th

The next Urban Core, part 1:  May 4 - 6th and Urban Core, Part 2: June 1 - 3rd

Newly opened, 16-Hour Wilderness First Aid Certification, April 28 - 29th

He talks about the general concept of eating wild food and things to consider with this.  Sam then covers the following wild plants that are blooming in January:

• Thistles (Sow Thistle, Canada Thistle, Texas Thistle, Bull Thistle) - Cirsium, Carduus, and Sonchus genus
• Cleavers: (Galium aparine)
• Wood Sorrel: (Oxalis acetosella)
• Pennsylvania cucumber plant (Parietaria pennsylvanica)
• Henbit (Lamium amplexicaule)
• Lambsquarters (Chenopodium album)

Upcoming  Related Courses

Herbology Level One

Wilderness First Aid, 16 Hour Certification Course

• How do binoculars compare to spotting scopes?
• How do you answer the question, “What’s the best pair of binoculars for me?”
• What is magnification vs. objective size?
• What kind of magnification do I want?
• Does magnification effect other things besides what I can see?
• What is FOV? How important is that?
• What effects twilight performance, and how important is it?
• What else should I be thinking about if I’m buying binoculars?

This is one of the topics covered during The Human Path Urban Core Basic class.  Sign up here for the next UCB class!

• What the ideal temperature is for fermentation
• How different times of years and locales can alter fermentation times and the outcome
• Surface mold - should you be concerned?
• Fermenting fruits: how a higher sugar content changes the process slightly
• How fruit can produce alcohol if the fruit fermentation time continues
• Fermenters Club: the online resources available and creating a way to try new recipes, swap foods and come together as a community
• Canning vs. fermenting
• What is the risk of botulism from fermenting?
• The importance of learning to trust the senses with home preserved foods.

Austin Durant is a software entrepreneur/computer nerd by trade and a fermenter/food nerd by choice. He started fermenting after reading about the benefits of fermented foods in an article by the Weston A. Price Foundation. The benefits were obvious– it’s economical, it’s local/seasonal, it requires small batches, and it’s nutritious. He wanted to add the “community” aspect, so he started Fermenters Club as a way to enable others to make and share fermented foods with their friends.  He lives in San Diego’s North Park neighborhood, ground zero for the local slow food movement.

Fermenters Club, founded in 2011, is a community of food enthusiasts who share a love for traditionally-preserved, natural probiotic foods. Fermenters can participate locally and virtually: Locally: Fermenters Club holds workshops, food swaps and classes to teach people how to ferment their own food. Fermenters also form local clubs of 4 to 6 people who meet regularly to swap fermented foods. Virtual: Fermenters Club offers a way for enthusiasts around the world to connect and find each other, learn and share recipes, find local events, ask questions and share success stories! Sign up or browse anonymously to find recipes, photos, stories, tips and more.

Resources

www.fermentersclub.com

http://facebook.com/fermenters

http://twitter.com/fermentersclub

Check out Part one of this podcast: Episode 82

In today’s podcast, Austin and Sam discuss the basics around fermenting ‘pretty much anything’:

• A bit of brief history: fermentation is a food preservation process that dates back thousands of years
• How fermentation imparts nutrients, vitamins and enzymes not present in processed or quickly prepared canned foods
• What does consuming living probiotic bacteria do to/for the body?
• Why is making food in small batches better for making friends with your neighbors?
• The difference between quick pickling techniques vs. slow fermentation and some parallels between fermentation and herbology
• What happens in the process of creating fermented foods
• Sauerkraut: make it in a week or over the winter….
• The equipment needed to get started
• What is wild fermentation?
• Turnips, carrots, kale, cabbage: whats in your vegetable bin?  You can ferment all of it.
• How to make sauerkraut
• Why weighing down foods is important

Austin Durant is a software entrepreneur/computer nerd by trade and a fermenter/food nerd by choice. He started fermenting after reading about the benefits of fermented foods in an article by the Weston A. Price Foundation. The benefits were obvious– it’s economical, it’s local/seasonal, it requires small batches, and it’s nutritious. He wanted to add the “community” aspect, so he started Fermenters Club as a way to enable others to make and share fermented foods with their friends.  He lives in San Diego’s North Park neighborhood, ground zero for the local slow food movement.

Fermenters Club, founded in 2011, is a community of food enthusiasts who share a love for traditionally-preserved, natural probiotic foods. Fermenters can participate locally and virtually: Locally: Fermenters Club holds workshops, food swaps and classes to teach people how to ferment their own food. Fermenters also form local clubs of 4 to 6 people who meet regularly to swap fermented foods. Virtual: Fermenters Club offers a way for enthusiasts around the world to connect and find each other, learn and share recipes, find local events, ask questions and share success stories! Sign up or browse anonymously to find recipes, photos, stories, tips and more.

Join us tomorrow for the 2nd half of this podcast!

Resources

www.fermentersclub.com

http://facebook.com/fermenters

http://twitter.com/fermentersclub

Sam Coffman and Andrea discuss:

• What is one item that is almost impossible to find a substitution for?
• How has that one item grown to faciliate interaction between like-minded people who are practicing self-sustainability with discussions, an unlimited knowledge base and place of support?
• How does history play an important role in devising substitutions for items?
• the 23-Day Frugal Living Challenge, what is it, what does it include and how does it work?
• What is THE toughest thing about changing from a consumer-driven lifestyle to one that is more independent?
• Andrea’s personal preparedness in event of a life-changing disaster
• The importance of both neighbors and community
• What is the most important core principle of preparedness that so many people have neglected?
• How dependence on society’s ’safety net’ has rendered the majority of people incapable of basic survival skills like getting food, purifying water and coping with disaster
• re-defining ‘wants’ and ‘needs’ is the key to becoming self-sustainable

Andrea is Registered Nurse turned frugally sustainable homemaker. She left her full-time career in order to live out her passions as a wife, a homeschooling Mom to three young children, a homemaker, and a blogger. Together she and her family live in a suburb of Phoenix, Arizona. They are all about designing a deeply enjoyable and rewarding life that is interdependent on like-minded others, ecologically responsible and centered around the home.

Andrea blogs at Frugally Sustainable. There you can read about her family’s counter-cultural journey away from consumerism. You may also be interested to join the growing community of like-minded individuals on her Facebook page or follower her on twitter @FrugallySustain.

Listen to Episode 080: The Self Sustained Lifestyle, Part one.

Sam Coffman and Andrea Muse discuss the transition between a mainstream hyper-consumer-driven life to one that is simpler, slower and richer at the same time.

• how her family made the transition from ‘consumer’ role to that of a ‘producer’
• what initial changes they found they could do without: gym memberships, attending every social event on their calender, participating in all the sports for children, etc.  and how it affected the family
• how coping with a passion-less job drives people to seek distractions to make it do-able
• the time obstacles with a more sustainable lifestyle and how making that shift requires creating your own ‘time-zone’ instead of the hectic rat-race pace
• how dependence on the consumer consiousness causes cultures to lose their sense of ingenuity and creativity in favor of  ’stuff’.
• some things Andrea has done on the road to becoming more in control of her own life:  gardening, saving seeds, using alternatives to high-energy sucking appliances, making her own products, repairing their own cars and raising their own food, etc. etc.
• becoming self-sustainable is a gradual process that doesn’t have to be overwhelming and instead, can be freeing as people find their own creativity, the ability to self-teach and the importance of nurturing real relationships of substance.

Tomorrow, we’ll finish up the podcast with how Andrea makes this possible.

Andrea is Registered Nurse turned frugally sustainable homemaker. She left her full-time career in order to live out her passions as a wife, a homeschooling Mom to three young children, a homemaker, and a blogger. Together she and her family live in a suburb of Phoenix, Arizona. They are all about designing a deeply enjoyable and rewarding life that is interdependent on like-minded others, ecologically responsible and centered around the home.

Andrea blogs at Frugally Sustainable. There you can read about her family’s counter-cultural journey away from consumerism. You may also be interested to join the growing community of like-minded individuals on her Facebook page or follower her on twitter @FrugallySustain.

• Does the energetic approach to understanding the healing properties of plants, work?  What exactly is it?
• Real-life examples of how herbal medicine has worked for treatment of injuries and illness
• What are some of the medicinal plants that are showing themselves in central Texas as we move into winter?
• What are some of the nutritional and medicinal uses (and preparations) of Chickweed (Stellaria media)?  Is there another plant it can be easily mistaken for in central Texas?
• What are some of the organ and body systems that Cleavers (Gallium aparine) effects?

Interested in studying plant medicine with Sam Coffman or Nicole Telkes?

Check out The Human Path Level 1 herbology course in 2012

or check out Nicole Telkes’ website for her upcoming herbalism classes

Nicole and Sam discuss:

• The changes that our cultural/societal awareness has gone through regarding plant medicine
• Are herbs just “nutritional supplements” or are they actual medicine?
• How has our cultural attitude about medicine and healing changed over the past century?
• What exactly is “Occupy Herbalism” and how does it fit or not fit in with the concept of the “Occupy” movement?
• What does it mean to bring medicine back to the people?
• How working with plants actually changes people much more deeply
• What is the difference between a reductionist vs. a vitalistic approach to herbalism?

Interested in studying plant medicine with Sam Coffman or Nicole Telkes?

Check out The Human Path Level 1 herbology course in 2012

or check out Nicole Telkes’ website for her upcoming herbalism classes

• By working with the equipment in the bag in testing situations … in the dark, under time limits or under stress, a person can grow used to where things are in the pack and become more familiar with and more comfortable using the tools inside the bag.
• Must-have essentials:  fasteners like paracord or zip ties, duct tape, lighting options like a candle or head lamp, a rain poncho, knife, etc.
• Other essentials that are invaluable: fishing gear, shoo goo, extra batteries, a multi-tool.
• The benefits of a candle vs. a chem light
• How bike tire tubes can be useful as an emergency firestarter method when wood is wet
• The multiple uses for a rain poncho beyond weather protection
• The psychological effect of luxury or comfort items in a bug-out bag
• Don’t forget to pack attitude. Attitude, whether positive or negative, is contagious and will affect every aspect of an emergency situation.

Podcast 076: Fire and Water

Podcast 071: Footwear and Clothing

Podcast 070: Basic Essentials of the Bugout Bag, An Overview.

Anyone participating in the recent Scout series at The Human Path can tell you the importance of what they pack and carry with them.  For more information on the upcoming scout classes, visit our 2012 online calendar.

To keep in the loop for our upcoming classes, workshops and more, join our newsletter list!

• Water Containers
• Water Purification when on the move
• Fire making and fire kits
• The importance of having redundant technologies
• The importance of “gear overlap”

Tomorrow’s podcast will conclude our discussion of a well-rounded, well-equipped bug-out bag you can rely on.

Podcast 071: Footwear and Clothing

Podcast 070: Basic Essentials of the Bugout Bag, An Overview.

Sam Coffman and Nicole discuss:

• by using canning, freezing, dehydrating, fermenting and other food preservation methods, people are able to more closely control what they eat, the area it comes from and build up a food storage they can use year-round
• how canning is an excellent way for beginners to try out preserving their own food. There is an abundance of recipes and food items they can use, it requires less equipment and is relatively easy to do.
• pressure cooking:  which foods it is suited for and why it is necessary to use the pressure canner instead of the water bath method.
• examples of low-acid foods
• freezing:  why blanching foods before freezing is an important step to preserving those foods.
• open-air drying: simple and easy things to do when using this technique
• how to avoid cracked or exploded glass when freezing foods in glass containers

Nicole Joyce has both a Facebook page for ‘Born In the Wrong Century’ as well as the blog itself. An avid fan of preservation techniques, she plans to expand on her current practices to include more gardening, foraging and self-sustaining methods this coming year.

Good Resources

The Ball Canning website

The USDA Complete Guide To Home Canning

In today’s podcast, Sam briefly explores the concept behind this type of running, the type of shoe used and how it can change the way you exercise, build up new muscles and lessen the strain and impact on your body.

Check out the Human Path’s workout of the day online here

Additional Resource:  chirunning.com

• checked the soil for quality and pesticide content
• land had to have a good passive solar orientation with open south-facing exposure for maximum advantage
• and most importantly, good neighbors. “its where you want to be”

Laurie’s family has taken care over the last 6 years to create an environment that is both self-sustaining and community-oriented. The garden has acted both as a significant food source but also as a bonding element for important community ties.

• They tend a 1-acre garden, plus fruit and nut trees, resulting in plentiful harvests and long canning sessions to preserve the foods.
• Self-seeding herbs in the garden act both as companion plants and as edible and medicinal sources
• Local sourced meat, from a share of a cow to local chickens, etc puts into the local economy and ensures fresh healthy meat
• their home was built and designed as ‘green’ with both passive and active solar hot water systems
• Water is supplied from a 100-foot well on their land

Wife and mother with a background in engineering and a passion for natural healing, nutrition, homesteading and gardening. Advocate for a common sense approach to living “green”. Operated the world’s largest flat plate collector solar water heating system. Experienced with residential active and passive solar applications, green building, heirloom gardening, low-energy food storage and other self-sufficiency/sustainability topics.

Currently a writer and educator, my focus is providing accurate, timely and affordable information for the average person who is looking to reduce their environmental impact, become more self-reliant and live a healthier life.

Common Sense Homesteading blog

Facebook page

Twitter – CommonSenseIdea

Make sure you join us tomorrow when we continue this podcast and discuss food preservation and fermenting techniques!

You dig a scout fire-pit and make a hobo stove out of a large can you found.  You gather enough small pieces of dry wood (mostly the ashe juniper) to boil several pots of water, and go about restocking your water supply as well as hydrating fully.

You still have about 3/4 of the food you started with,  but you’re hungry and don’t want to eat the food you’re carrying if you don’t have to.  You don’t really have time to look around too much for animal food, but there are a number of things that are presenting themselves to you as possible easy food.  Describe how you would capture/harvest &  prepare for eating, the following possibilities that you see here:

1)

2)

3)

This is the final part of this disaster scenario.  Post your comments here and we will reply at the end of the day with feedback.

To see the first part of this disaster scenario, check out Episode 057.

Part two of the scenario, click here for Episode 058.

Part three of the scenario, click here for Episode 059.

Part four of the scenario, click here for Episode 060.

We’ll be returning to our regular podcast routine on Monday October 10th with a very cool interview on modern-day homesteading!

You scout the wooded areas carefully around the marsh as the sun is just starting to rise, and don’t see any signs of people in the woods, although there are a couple of buildings at least 1/2 mile in the distance to the west that look like they might be ranch or farm houses.

You find a good natural shelter and decide one of your main priorities is making sure you hydrate and refill all your water.  It looks like this small wetlands area may actually continue and feed into some larger body of water, and you’re pretty sure that there is a river running north/south that would take you close to your sister’s house.

You have iodiine tablets, a small metal pot and the ability to make fire.  There is a lot of tinder and kindling available, as well as many thickly vegetated areas and the usual piece of occasional trash, to include glass bottles, beer/pop cans, plastic bottles and tin cans.

Question 10:

What do you think is the best way to purify your water from this marsh?

A)  Boiling

B)  Iodine

C)  Other (what, specifically if so?)

Question 11:

What are some of the pathogens might you be most concerned with from water in a location like this?

Question 12:

If you had to start a fire to boil water, either during the day, evening or night, what are some of your options to do so and avoid being seen?  What would be your first choice of ways to do this?

Question 13:

What do you think are some of the primary security considerations that determine your best location to hide out and sleep during the day?

The final part of this disaster scenario will be posted next week.  Post your comments here and we will reply at the end of the day with feedback.

To see the first part of this disaster scenario, check out Episode 057.

Part two of the scenario, click here for Episode 058.

Part three of the scenario, click here for Episode 059.

Part 3:

You walk all night in a southwesterly direction, and walking along back roads that you are not completely familiar with. At one point during the night you hear what sounds like a protracted gun battle, maybe 1/2 mile or more to the west of you in what you think is a small town, but otherwise you encounter no problems.  You have passed many ranches and farmhouses, but are concerned that you might get shot at if you walk up to, or enter someone’s home.  You decide that if you could find natural water, the best thing might be to hole up for the day, get some much-needed rest, maybe in a spot where you can observe a farmhouse or two and see if there are people who would be helpful to your situation.

Your water supply is running low, and of course you’d like to find some place to hide out during the day that’s near some natural water, but you haven’t seen any yet, even though the area you’re traveling through seems to be mostly woodlands and farmlands.

It is an hour or so before dawn, and you happen to hear a bird call to the southeast that sounds like this.

(If the above link to the bird call doesn’t work, you can also reach it directly  - http://www.thehumanpath.com/media/sound/Scenario_Part3.wav)

Question 7:

What bird is this?

Question 8:

Would hearing this bird at this time of day bear any significance to your needs?

Question 9:

Are there any general habits of many bird species at a given time of day that would indicate location of water? What are those habits?

The next part of this disaster scenario will be posted next week.  Post your comments here and we will reply at the end of the day with feedback.

To see the first part of this disaster scenario, check out Episode 057.

Part two of the scenario, click here for Episode 058.

I neglected to give a time of year for this.  Let’s say it’s December.  That doesn’t change anything in the discussion for Part 1 though - in fact traveling at night means you can stay warm on top of everything else.  This makes it a little easier for us to deal with the water issue too since we can stay cool even during the day.

You are now traveling at night as discussed in part 1.  You need to travel south/southwest and know most of the back roads you want to take.  However you haven’t driven on some of them ever… just know them from maps, and everything always looks different on foot, and especially at night.  Even familiar roads.  You need to keep track of your general direction.  You know the north star, but because there’s a half moon out, there’s too much light pollution to be able to see it or find it easily.  There are a couple of easy things you could look for that you know of, especially in this latitude.  You’ve been walking in the dark for about 5 hours, and when you look up ahead of you, you are walking toward the following constellation:

Question 3: What is the name of this constellation?

Question 4: Are you walking in the general correct direction?

You know another way to tell direction at night time based on the moon at around this time of night.  The moon was already in the sky before sunset, you noticed, and you remember that means its illuminated side is pointing to one of the compass directions.

Question 5: What direction does the illuminated side of the moon face if the moon rises before sunset?

Question 6: What direction does the illuminated side of the moon face if it rises after midnight?

The next part of this disaster scenario will be posted next week.  Post your comments here and we will reply at the end of the day with feedback.

To see the first part of this disaster scenario, check out Episode 057.

• Batteries: car vs. deep well batteries — how long each is good for and what they are best suited for
• the important things to consider when buying your own generator
  • fuel costs
  • fuel storage: how long will it last
  • noise output: how conspicious will your generator be in a situation where you need to go unnoticed?
  • general cost of the generator
  • life span of the generator
• most common types of generators along with their pros and cons
  • gasoline
  • diesel
  • propane
  • solar
• Pricing of generators and what you should expect

Listen to the first half of this series: Episode 052: ‘How many watts does it take to screw in a lightbulb?’

No doctor in sight and got an emergency? 16-hour Wilderness First Aid Certification course, September 24th

Coming up in November 2011: Disaster relief scenario. A real-life scenario of situations you might have to deal with in a disaster situation like Hurricane Katrina or another natural disaster.

Learn how to take care of yourself and those you love in stressful situations to stay safe, secure and provided for. The 2012 Human Path schedule will be posted soon. Get on our newsletter list to find out about membership, early sign-up discounts and upcoming classes!

• Generators provide essential power for both communication devices and security needs
• By determining your ‘power footprint’, or the amount of wattage you need to power your own specific appliances, you can determine what kind of generator you will need
• A quick run-through of appliances and estimated wattage used to run them
• What is surge and how will it affect running more than one appliance from your generator?
• Generators vs. Power Invertors.

The 2nd half of this discussion will conclude with more information on choosing between invertors or generators as well as pricing and what to look for when you buy your own alternative power source.

No doctor in sight and got an emergency? 16-hour Wilderness First Aid Certification course, September 24th

Coming up in November 2011: Disaster relief scenario. A real-life scenario of situations you might have to deal with in a disaster situation like Hurricane Katrina or another natural disaster.

Learn how to take care of yourself and those you love in stressful situations to stay safe, secure and provided for.  The 2012 Human Path schedule will be posted soon. Get on our newsletter list to find out about membership, early sign-up discounts and upcoming classes!

Today’s podcast continues to discuss how to cope with a societal/economic breakdown.  Fernando and Sam discuss:

• What are your options at the point that you want to pull away from mainstream society because of economic and social breakdown?
• The importance of attitude in survival and self defense
• The importance of physical conditioning for survival
• The sad truth about the mechanisms of control in the USA and every other society

Listen to the first half of this podcast: Episode 050: Surviving The Economy Collapse

Borage is a very powerful medicinal plant that is energetically cooling in nature.  Sam and Nicole discuss their different approaches to this herb around points such as:

• Is borage safe to take internally?
• What is an adaptogen?
• Does it have a different effect on females vs. males?
• Is it better as a simple, or as part of a formula?
• What are the energetic applications of borage?

Listen to Part 1, herbology episode 044: Skullcap

Listen to yesterday’s Part 2, herbology episode 046: Algerito

Check out our online blog on making algerito jam

• Is algerita the “Goldenseal of the hill country?”
• What are the extensive medicinal uses of algerita?
• Can it be used internally as well as externally?
• Is there any part of this plant that can’t be used in some way for food or medicine?
• What parts are best to use medicinally, and how should they be prepared?

Listen to Podcast episode 044: Skullcap.

Check out an earlier blog entry about making jam with Algerito here.

Tomorrow we will finish this series up with a discussion on Borage.