14 thoughts on “Tribe recognizes tribe”

1. When I was much younger we referred to it as ” being raised country”. Big gardens. From spring till fall hitting the woods for mushrooms and wild asparagus. Then wild strawberries in June and in July the black raspberries were ripe. All the while fishing and when the first hunting season in Sept.
   Most of my friends grew up the same way. We boomers for the most part had if we were lucky 19th century upbringing. We rode horses. Shot guns. Hunted and fished and used what the natural world offered to us. In that way we’re like other tribes that went before. Both of the counties I have lived in here had ancient presence of indigenous people. Both Huron Potowatamie. The reservation is about 4 miles from me. I’ve hunted the same swamps and marshes as those people from long ago.
   Growing up in a rural county we supplemented out store bought food with beef and pork we raised and butchered. We had chickens and milk cow’s. The gardens not only fed us through the Sumner and fall months but the food that was preserved by canning, freezing and drying got us through till the next year. It was a way of life. A better way in my mind. The food we ate was something we didn’t have to wonder about where it came from. We knew. It came by our own hand. In the 70s the back to the land movement began to realize what was not lost so much as ignored. The movement has grown in many directions as new skills are rediscovered and exploited. Like making soap. Raising sheep and learning to spin the wool into yarn. There used to be many festivals in my area where these traditional crafts could be sold and demonstrated. My love affair with wool started in earnest when I began historical reenacting. And it hasn’t diminished one bit. If anything our current disposable society has done its made us appreciate the old ways when things were made to last. Filson wear that was made 50 years ago can still be found on eBay. Whitney Point blankets are found at times as well. I saw one auction that had two blankets sewn together. That’s the way they were shipped from the English mills to Canada. Those blankets were at least a hundred years old yet looked new and quite serviceable. Many of my wood working tools are over a hundred years old. I love Miller’s Falls hand tools. They were the best. Then and now.
   Guess I’ve rambled enough here. But the point is well taken. We are the others. And I’ll let it go at that.

2. A co-worker of mine tended to gripe, off and on, about the fact that his wife was constantly spending money on stuff “they didn’t need because she already had so much” stored in the house, garage, bedrooms, storage shed, etc., etc.

   I asked a couple of questions about where she found certain items on sale as I was looking for good sales, too, to put back some extra. It gave him a chance to vent and he realized it wasn’t just his wife being paranoid when our conversations turned to current events and others were putting stores away, too.

   Now the gripe sessions have gone.

   • People at work used to laugh at my “prepper” attitude. Then came the Chinky Pox. Then came the shortages. At least two of my coworkers have said to me “I’ll never laugh at you again.”

3. What communities would medical personnel be needed most?

   • The question really is:

     What can the doctor, nurse, EMT, do without a ready resupply of what their use to?

     • A book service I use has some very good books on medicines from years ago. Homeopathic remedies that still work. I still make my own cough sryup from a recipe given to my mother from my pediatrician. It works better then the store naught.
       The book service has great deals on books. And there are many books on medicine and living in nature. Survival books and books about anything you can think of.
       Edward R Hamilton Bookseller. They have a web site. They also have very fast turnaround when ordered by mail. I have purchased close to two hundred books from them in the last three years.

4. I tend to not say anything about what I put back when people start to talk about it.
   Once I know there not just fishing and are a true “Brother of the cause ” Then I’ll engage in some talk but never reveal much.

5. Medical skills have to evaluated by ability to function outside a well stocked hospital. Even EMS folks are limited if their ambulances are not in resupply of a hospital or similar.

   A well trained Anesthesiologists for example without his pharmacy and electrical run machines might not have much use as a Medic.

   Street medicine and Civil War Medicine is likely to be the best we get if the lights go out. Childbirth and broken bones will be serious concerns. An infection from a rusty nail might be a death sentence. A dog bite a real infection concern, and so on.

   Closing a wound with a stapler, or superglue or even stiches is likely to have serious infection concerns given the soon used up antibiotic supplies. Incorrect use of antibiotics isn’t much of an improvement.

   I expect to be doing a lot of granulation wound closures and dressing changes as not to lock in where I cannot find nor washout infections. Ripping open an partially healed infected wound for a washout isn’t fun with out anesthesia.

   Going to be a rough world out there when 911 doesn’t work.

6. Then we revert to what worked over the last two hundred years. My mother was born in a doctor’s office/ home combination. Her brother and sister were born at home.
   A tetanus booster every three to five years is a good idea. The Foxfire books offer another path to enlightenment. There are people back in the hills that will go to a local woman ” who knows about yarbs”. Meaning herbal remedies. These woman are also midwives. Ever see some of those folks? I’ve met many that are in their nineties and early years of their second hundred. One thing here. Age is a state of mind.

7. MichiganPrepper you’re on target. But please remember to visit an OLD Cemetery someday soon. Note how many family stones have a man and his many wives that died in childbirth. Along with the many children who died before they were adults.

   Foxfire is interesting but I have the set and there is plenty of “Info” in there I’d not recommend. Your intelligent friend. You know the Bell Curve and the fact that even in the Dark Ages there were folks that somehow outlived most of their family to include sadly their children.

   I have an herbal garden and can treat a lot of things “naturally”, meaning supporting care for the injured-ill and helping their own body heal itself. I’ve helped run 3rd world dental services, doing street tooth care to include pulling them. The pain of a quick tooth removal is sharp but subsides pretty quickly once you get the bleeding resolved and suctioned out.

   An NO you don’t get them drunk first; you just get a Drunk that doesn’t want to be hurt.

   • As an historian I’ve spent a good many hours in cemeteries. I was part of the graves registration project for the Sons of Union veterans. I’ve audited many. There is plenty to learn in those places. And yes I know that some of the remedies from long ago were dangerous. Like the Rushes thunderbolts the Corp of Discovery took with them. They contained Mercury. As an aside that is one way the modern archeologists are able to confirm camp sights used by them. By the mercury in their bodily waste that remains today.
     In the late nineteenth century radium was touted as a miracle cure. It was sold in various size bottles. One fellow I read about drank 200 4 ounce bottles. His lower jaw fell off.
     Because of one of my former occupations advanced first aid was a requirement.
     These days the are former military medics giving battlefield medicine training. Many of the advances in modern medicine come as a result of medical discoveries during war. The American Civil War led to many advancements in treatments. Vietnam. The helicopter got wounded troops to the aid stations and hospitals and the survival rate was greater because of not having to be carried across a battlefield. Still in use today. The Golden hour is now part of the medical regime for EMT and Paramedics today. Treat, stabilize, transport.
     The book service I noted earlier allows me to buy 6 books for the price of one I’d buy at B&N. So you can explore a subject quite well. One of my current catalogs has several books on old time remedies at least 2 written by former country doctors. The selection is limitless.

   • If you have a persistent bleeder did you ever use a tea bag? The tanic acid helps to stop the bleeding.

8. Single men go out for lunch,married men ”brown bag”

9. Our “community” or tribe has some common ‘tells’ that aren’t a bad thing at the moment. May come a day when you want to hide those flags but right now I notice:

   good clip knife in strong hand front pocket. Double points for another weak hand back pocket.

   pocket flashlight.

   concealed carry

   sports watch (not always a good indicator, but a hint)

   Paracord accessories like a bracelet or watchband

   Solid shoes or boots

   Cargo pants/ tactical pants

   Gun culture logo-wear or stickers

   Overshirt, or “dressing around the gun”.

   EDC bag, may only come out some times. Easy to see the ‘dads’ at disney or the park with their bag…

   –those are just some that spring to mind. Attitude, awareness, head on a swivel, constant glances for ID badge or rank tabs, unconcious ‘blading’ when standing, and some other things may be more prominent than a clip knife…

   -for ‘ordinary folks’ a political comment, comment on current affairs, or use of a keyword in conversation (FRN, PMs, ‘fiat’, any mention of the ‘three Bs’) might be enough to start a conversation…

   “whew, prices seem crazy high, it’s almost like our money is worth less every day…” should get a response that hints at how clued in someone is.

   I mainly just actually look at and talk to people, everywhere I go.

   n

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