Survival plan if at home Your Name: Andrew

Should we look for you on the radio waves or web: I am on the radio at school, FM frequency 91.1

Your location: Massachusetts Tell us:
Is your plan dependent on zombies in your home town, or anywhere? My town is relatively remote; highest civilized elevation in Massachusetts and thirty minutes drive to the nearest city which has a population of 45,793 according to the last census taken in 2008. Due to this my exact plan of action will obviously depend on the severity of the infection but the majority of it remains the same.


Will you be staying in your home or headed somewhere else?
My house is a three story log cabin with a wraparound porch that is nearly 10 feet above the ground at the lowest point and easily 20 feet at the highest. Knock out the one set of stairs leading to the porch and the only way in is through the second story sliding glass door. The front porch, when knocked out, will provide a barricade in front of the front door, which already is approximately 5 feet above the ground and is protected by a solid oak door followed by a thin wood and glass door, which will then be fortified with the large oak kitchen table. The basement is underground and can only be reached by the back door under the porch and by the stairs inside the house. By taking out the stairs in the house it negates any fear of the undead getting in from downstairs as well as the fact that the downstairs door can easily be barricaded with the wood we store under the porch for the winters and the pellet bags we use with the pellet stove. If, by some tragedy (or miracle depending on who’s point of view we are taking), the second story is compromised (consisting of two bedrooms, the kitchen with all the food supplies, the bathroom and the living room) the third floor will be the safe haven. Having knocked out the staircase upon hearing of the impending invasion the second and third stories will be separated by thirteen feet and only traversable by a removable metal step ladder. The foodstuffs will have already been moved up into the open air loft/balcony (same size as my living room) at the start of the invasion so there will be little worry about running out of food for at least two weeks. Here the trouble begins, having been pushed into the third story of my house I will be forced to use the guns in the gun cabinet in the master bedroom to retake my house so that I may scavenge when the need arises. My house was built by my parents and my brother and I have recently realized that it is a great house to hold up in, it is an easily defensible compound with a large back and front yard that will provide plenty of opportunities to hopefully destroy any undead before they even reach the house.

If you're heading out, how do you plan to get there?
The only place I may need to get to is my brother’s house, he is my next door neighbor and I would only have to run through a short path through the woods to get to his house. While this is risky it is a necessity and I will have weapons (see further questions.) I must do this because: He has a five year old son that, if something were to happen to my brother, I would need to protect/save. And I would have to warn my brother/help him escape from any trouble he may be having. I acknowledge that this is an incredibly dangerous and possibly fatal decision but nevertheless it must be done. If my house is compromised: I take my Wolf-creek backpack
containing:
Small Front pocket: Four double A batteries with a small black waterproof flashlight (two batteries already within light). Three packets of water proof, strike anywhere matches. Two Bic lighters. One Zippo lighter. (You should always bring multiple ways of creating fire.) Ten 20 dollar bills (on the off chance that someone may trade for cash still but mainly for starting fires.) and my small Buddha statue (Religion begets hope, hope begets a better overall mindset towards challenges).
Larger front pocket: a small first aid kit: (five regular band aids, two large square band aids, two gauze wraps with clips, small bottle of burn aloe, small bottle of peroxide, small bottle of rubbing alcohol) A bottle of gel ultra-strength pain relievers (gel tablets don’t rattle together like tic-tacs and headaches are no laughing matter). Two bottles of clean water. Two shotgun shells in the small inside pocket (in case I am bitten and have used all the other ammunition. Only to be used on myself).
Main pocket: Small reference map of local areas and a larger map of nearby states. (avoid any large cities). Two pens and two pencils to jot notes on the map for myself or someone who may come upon my body should I be bitten. Small handgun (.22) with a box of 50 shells. (will take up virtually no space because of the size yet it will still do its job.) Two utility/swiss army knives. Six cans of food (something nutritious that can be eaten raw without inducing gagging: peaches, green beans, spam, tuna) One small metal pot (in case I find a safe place where I can actually cook a meal without fear of discovery) and two boxes of nutra-grain bars

I will carry one of the 16 gauge shotguns with a bullet belt around my waist and the .357 magnum will be in its holster on my belt with its bullets in another bullet belt. I may also carry my brass-knuckled knife around my calf in its sheath. I will strap on one of my tree stands and sling the bag onto that for easy carrying. This way I can spend my nights in the trees with no fear of discovery. I will most likely head for the small nearby town of Hinsdale to check for food in the stores and weapons in the police department. From there it will depend on if I meet survivors or find a suitable place to fortify. I will, eventually when i find enough supplies to make the trip, move to New York in Coxackie where there is a prison with high barbed wire fences and large steel barred doors. the doors of course to keep the undead out while the barbed wire fences might discourage any raiders.
I will be wearing a sturdy pair of snug fitting jeans with a leather belt, steel toed work boots, (I know these are not great for long distance but it’s the best I have right now). An earth brown pink Floyd t-shirt (I chose this shirt because it is a dull color that hopefully will not attract attention), and a medium weight forest camo hunting jacket.

Got anyone you want to take with you?
Besides the aforementioned brother and nephew I would call, not run to, my neighbor’s house. If the lines are down than they are on their own. My dad works in New York and thus will most likely either be dead, undead, or on his way home, there is nothing I can do for him. My mother is a bus driver and has a CB radio and regular radio so will probably know of the outbreak before I do and will most likely get home and inform me upon her arrival, there is nothing I can do for her.

How will you communicate with the outside world, or do you plan to go the hermit route?
Communication runs the risk of attracting the undead not to mention the risk of desperate survivors who may try to break into the house to pillage my supplies, in the beginning it is safest to simply go the hermit route but after a while signs will be made to signify (if all goes well) that the house is a safe house for any non bitten who find it and mean well. They will however be dealt with utmost scrutiny and suspicion upon arrival.

How are you planning to get food and water?
I will begin by using the perishables that my brother and I collect from our two houses and put in the third floor of the house. Water can be stored in the many bottles we keep for redemption money (5 cent return, it’s not much but with the economy today…), then we will resort to scavenging the nearby neighbor’s houses/clearing them of the infected as quietly as possible to avoid any unwanted attention, undead or otherwise. From there we will sweep our range further and further out and if we get ambitious/have to survive for a long period of time in our house we can turn the wraparound porch into an effective green house and then scavenge for seeds as well as go hunting for deer, rabbits and anything else we can find (thanks to my father, my brother and I are both proficient hunters and decent shots).

What's your weapon of choice? Do you need to reload that thing? Gotta plan for that?
One reliable 12 gauge shotgun, 20+ cartridges: kicks like a freaking mule but shoots straight as an arrow
Two reliable 16 gauge shotguns, 50+ cartridges: Decent shots, my brother and I both trained with these.
One reliable .357 magnum, 30+ shells: not an arrow straight shot but good nonetheless
One reliable .22 revolver, 50 shells: not to brag but I am a dead shot with this gun.
Three reliable compound bows, 20 steel tipped hunting arrows each. My brother is better than me with the bow and is proficient up to thirty yards.
One single shot .22 rifle, 25+ cartridges
Two reliable black powder rifles, unsure of the gauge, maybe 16, unsure of number of shot/black powder/firing caps: very accurate and powerful but very slow to reload and very heavy.
Two replica stainless steel broadswords: good for at least a use or two if in need
One replica stainless steel Katana: good for at least a use or two
Two wooden baseball bats/one aluminum baseball bat: good for a few uses
One hockey stick (goalie): good for a few uses
One 12 inch serrated blade with brass knuckles inlaid into the handle (I love that knife, got it up in maine.) : will probably be used as more of a utility knife than anything
Two mauls (wood-chopping axes): good for a few uses at least
One chainsaw: gas powered=trouble/noise, probably not a good idea unless an emergency
One hatchet: most likely used for utility
Hopefully I will not need to use all of these but it’s good to keep a log of what you have.
Got a survival philosophy?
Just because you see a zombie doesn’t mean you have to kill it, escape as quietly and as undetected as possible. Let only those unbitten in and examine each carefully. If a friend is bitten give him/her the grace of a bullet to the head, if I am bitten, do not hide it but kiss the barrel of a gun and make peace with whichever god suits me at the time.

Are you willing to hook up with other survivors?
If they are healthy (unbitten) and, no offence, will not slow me down or get me killed. I am not afraid to kill someone who is a danger to my loved ones and friends.

Is your plan based on a book/movie/blog/scientist we may have heard of?
It is based on my own calm reasoning; I do not need some self-righteous preacher trying to tell me how best to survive. Though I have read his survival guide, Brooks offered nothing about survival that anyone with common sense could not figure out and thus is not in any sense a quintessential guide through the world of the undead. Those who cannot reason for themselves better eat a bullet because that will mean one less flesh eater for me to avoid.