Free Zombie Reading: The Dead Are Among Us

In a world filled with zombies on the move, there are thousands of stories of survival and struggle against the hordes.  If you are looking for free zombie stories to read, there are many on the internet.  I was recently introduced to a new zombie story blog - 

The Dead Are Among Us

So far, the story has a prologue and three exciting chapters, but more are on the way. From the Prime Minister to the local shopkeepers, everyone is threatened by the dead.  Who gets bit, who survives, and who is destined to shuffle across the world is very much in question.

If you'd like to follow the author and learn when new installments are posted, follow The Dead Are Among Us on Twitter. 

Five Ways To Die During A Zombie Apocalypse

 A zombie apocalypse would be an easy time to die.  The world would be filled with perils.  The dead would be ravenous and would be relentless.  Many of the humans would be ravenous and panicked.  Perhaps worst of all, the evil would be opportunistic.  Against this backdrop, there are many different ways to die.  But, here are five ways to die that would be very common.

1. You could die because you are too loud. 

Zombies are attracted to noise and commotion.  If you or someone in your family is making noise, they will hear it and start to home in on it.  If your child is crying or your dog is barking or your supplies are clanking together in your backpack, all of that will attract zombies.  Needless to say, a zombie apocalypse is a bad time to argue with your spouse.

A Zombie Walk in Brisbane Australia - photo by Andrew Mercer (www.baldwhiteguy.co.nz), CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

2. You could die because you are visible.  

Zombies go after what they can see.  While some zombie fiction gives the dead special abilities to sense the living, at the most basic level, zombies go after people that they can see.  If you are caught in a Zombie Apocalypse, you'll have to be very careful about moving out of your home unnecessarily.

  

3. You could die because you lack supplies.

Do you have extra food and water in your home?  Do you have extra supplies of your prescriptions?  Do you have any way to grow your own food?  Do you have a way to collect, clean, and purify drinking water?  The lack of vital supplies could force you to go out and seek new supplies.  Venturing out to get supplies is likely to make you more visible and therefore more vulnerable.

4. You could die because you are too sentimental.

Humans have feelings.  We know right from wrong.  We know how to help each other.  Unfortunately, a zombie apocalypse scenario may force us to face scenarios where we have to make a choice between helping someone or surviving.  Those are soul shattering decisions.  We may have to decide whether we can change an outcome successfully before committing to a course of action.  If we can help someone fight off a horde of zombies and we die, that doesn't help our family or our group survive.

Even on a smaller scale, sentimentality may cause problems.  For example, if you decide to evacuate, you'll need to pack your car with supplies and people.  If you pause to save old photo albums or other sentimental family treasures, your window of time for escape may close and you may lose your opportunity to evade the zombie onslaught.

5. You could die because you didn't stop and think.

The main advantage the living have over the dead is brains. You have to stop and think about what you want to accomplish, how you will accomplish it, what the risks are, and how you will survive if something goes wrong.  

Survival Tip: Wear Clothes to Be Seen

If you ever watch survival shows on television, you'll see that the smallest of decisions can make a big difference.  Take clothing for example.  The survival shows always seem to feature people hiking off into the woods wearing clothing that is in muted earthy tones of green, brown, tan, and gray.  These tones that make the wearer feel like they are one with nature also help them blend into nature.

A simple wardrobe change can make a hiker much more visible.  If you must have earthy tones, consider wearing something that is reversible and provides a blaze orange option.  For example, this Buckshot Polar Fleece Reversible Hunting Jacket provides a camouflage on the outside, but is also reversible to provide orange on the outside.  If you are hiding from zombies and bandit, the camouflage option is just great.

However, if you've wandered off a trail, gotten totally lost, and haven't seen anyone for days, blaze orange will come in handy when you are jumping up and down on a hill top hoping to be seen by a plane full of tourists.  It's just the smallest of clothing changes, but it could be a life saver!

Jackets aren't the only thing that is reversible, you can always add a reversible hat.  If you don't go for reversible, just remember that red, orange, and yellow can save a fellow!

How to Make Your Own Protective Mask

One thing that you'll notice in the Asian countries that are grappling with Corona or Covid-19 virus is that many people try to protect themselves by wearing masks.  Doctors and medical professionals in the United States initially told the public that we don't need masks and that they would be unlikely to fit us well if we had them. However, the thinking about mask is starting to change and now the CDC recommends a simple cloth mask.  A mask will provide a measure of protection for wearers and also keep an asymptomatic infected person from breathing on others.

Here is a link to the CDC recommendation on masks.

You can easily make a simple cloth or paper mask at home.  Here are two designs that I found on Youtube.  Again, I'm not a medical professional and you'll have to assess these designs on your own.

Finally, if the CDC has changed their mind about masks, can recommendations about goggles or glasses be far behind?  Stay safe.  Stay home.  Maintain strong social distancing.

Surviving the Covid-19 Pandemic

This blog is about surviving the zombie apocalypse.  I've always thought that if you were ready for our favorite fictional bogeyman, the zombie, you'd be ready to face other challenges like natural disaster.  Now, the entire world is facing the Covid-19 virus pandemic.  It's caused thousands of deaths and it may be with us for awhile.  That means we have to do what we can to protect ourselves and our families.

I am not a doctor or a medical professional.  Therefore, I suggest you visit the -

Center for Disease Control - Coronavirus Disease 2019 website.

In this emergency, we all have to work together to stay apart and maintain social distances of 6 feet or more from other people.  The Corona Virus can survive on surfaces for long periods of time and is easily spread.  You'll want to wash your hands thoroughly and take appropriate precautions.

One thing that everyone should know is that the corona virus is not the zombie apocalypse.  There is no breakdown in civil authority.  Goverment at every level and industry is working together to ensure that our country will fight the virus and that our society will emerge intact.  If you were prepared for this sort of emergency, that is great for you and your family.  However, it is too late to start hoarding food and toiletries now.  Now is the time to take what you need and leave some for others.  That reduces stress on the supply lines we all depend on and gives the stores time to replenish their shelves.

Stay calm.  Think about minimizing your time among others.  Don't hoard.  We will all get through this health emergency.

How to Build a Survival Stove

If civilization ever collapses and leaves us without electricity and cooking gas, we'll need to know how to create a stove and get things cooking again.  Fortunately, there are many ways to build a stove.

The Rocket Stove

One stove design that can be very useful in developing countries and survival situation is the Rocket Stove.  A rocket stove uses the principals of a chimney to build a very efficient stove that runs well on scrap wood, twigs, and other easily collected materials.  These videos from Youtube show how to construct a rocket stove from simple materials like bricks or cans.

This first build uses bricks to create a rocket stove.  It's an easy to see how this stove is easy to start and feed using sticks and kindling.

This second rocket stove was created using cans and small pebbles.  These sorts of stoves provide portability.  One note of caution, while traditional cans are usable for a rocket stove, galvanized buckets and cans release dangerous zinc fumes when heated.  Since these zinc fumes are toxic and will contaminate foods, don't use anything galvanized for stove construction.

Book Review: Rob Horner's Night Zero

I haven't posted on this blog for a long time.  But, I wanted to take a moment to tell you about a Zombie Apocalypse novel that I recently read.  It's Night Zero by Rob Horner.  It's an excellent novel that brings us into a zombie apocalypse from the perspective of victims, first responders, emergency room staff, and even zombies.

I liked this book because it provided a very plausible scientific reason for the outbreak of a zombie-like disease.  The author has a medical background and brings it to bear on the topic with a deep knowledge of biology, medicine, and the workings of paramedics and small to mid-sized hospital emergency rooms.  Best of all, he brings all this knowledge to bear without getting too explanatory or subjecting us to a prolonged essay on viral diseases.  The author's knowledge adds realism to the story and adds to the terror.

If you like medical dramas like Grey's Anatomy, Chicago Hope, ER,  or even Emergency, you'll love this novel.  If you hate those kind of dramas, you'll love this novel too because Night Zero has plenty of gruesome zombie fights that bring a major dose of The Walking Dead or World War Z to the party.

I'm not big on book reviews that have spoilers.  I'll just say this:  if you are a fan of the Zombie Genre, you need to buy this novel!