Survival – The Importance of Fire

While I was being told about this, standing around in our kitchen, wearing only shorts and a t-shirt since I hadn’t gone out yet on a Saturday, I reached in a pocket, pulled out a lighter and flicked it into life. No, I don’t smoke, I just understand that fire is really that important. I could have just as easily produced a knife or a flashlight, and I have an electronic compass in my casual watch and another in my phone. That’s lounging around the house, not going anywhere. When I’m leaving the house I carry more. If I’m driving or walking more than a block or two, much more.

Survival – I Carry Too Much Stuff

When I go out the door on a typical out-and-about day, I have my wallet (with some unusual items inside but no cash), a folding knife, a lighter, spare car key, money clip with bills, a Chawley Changer pocket coin dispenser (okay, that’s a little weird, but it’s fast, convenient, and I hate having loose change sloshing around in a pocket), a full-sized multi-tool, one of may folding knives (occasionally two), a lipstick-sized flashlight around my neck on a stainless dog-tag chain .. and of course my phone. That’s not counting the stuff on my key chain, miscellaneous keys, a tiny titanium peanut lighter, the tiniest ferrocerium rod I’ve ever seen (Boy Scouts of America, smaller than a house key), a photon lighter, a P38 can opener, and the car-door opener/alarm remote control.

The Urban/Suburban EDC/Get-Home kit list

I’m a firm believer in versatility. The more detailed the scenario, the more specific you get in trying to predict the future, the more likely you are to be wrong, so I believe in just generally enabling yourself to handle more situations as they come up. Knives, flashlights, and multi-tools are among the most versatile tools there are, and can make you a whole lot harder to kill in a “collateral damage” sense. Insulation, water carrying capacity and the ability to make fire are almost universal needs.