Photo credit: Stuart Axe

Preparing

People seem to convince themselves that they can weather the storm and then find out they cannot, and then attempt to evacuate and find out it’s too late. Always consider leaving as a real possibility, and not just a vague notion if things get too rough. You have to plan for it, along with planning to stay in your home.

Where you will go must be decided before you have to leave. You must know where all emergency shelters are located in your area, and how to get there in the dark as well as in the daytime. Know the routes designated for evacuation out of your area, and map out alternatives in case one, or even all, are not passable. You also have to prepare for the possibility that emergency shelters may not be in operation because they were damaged by the storm.

You cannot assume the shelters will have emergency supplies, so it is important that you bring your own. The best way is to have backpacks (bug out bags) for every family member. The packs will be in addition to any supplies for the home. It is important that each backpack have the emergency essentials for the person carrying it to survive. Family members can be separated, and if one person is responsible for carrying water and other food, and they become separated – everyone suffers.

Supplies For Each Pack Include:

• Food for 72 hours, such as protein bars, trail mix, MREs, beef jerky…
• Water for three days – at least 2 quarts/liters daily – just for drinking (1.5 gallons for 72 hours)
• Rain gear such as a poncho
• Thermal blanket
• First aid supplies, with any prescription medications
• Multi-tool along with a fixed bladed knife
• 50 ft of nylon rope
• One waterproof lightweight tarp for emergency shelter (or a 1 person tent depending on the size/contents of your pack)
• Matches, lighters, and alternative fire starting tools
• Communication devices
• Extra socks (it is assumed a person would be wearing clothing appropriate for the season, so avoid over packing)
• Collapsible walking stick (can be used as protection)
• Compass with maps of the area, state, and county
• Personal hygience items
• Hat, gloves (work or cold weather), bandana, sunglasses, lip balm, hand sanitizer
• Insect repellent
• Cash, change, and personal ID (make sure this is on their person at all times)
• A sleeping bag can be optional if space allows

The packs should stay packed, and be placed in your vehicle when the storm nears. Make sure your vehicle is backed into the driveway, and is fueled up. That way, once the decision is made, all you have to do is get everyone in, and go. You have to remember that if the shelters are closed you will have to travel beyond the storm’s reach, and possibly use your vehicle as shelter if rooms at motels/hotels are unavailable.

When to Leave

You have to be informed, and leave before the highways are clogged, or become damaged. Once an order is given leave immediately, or leave before the order is given based on conditions in your area.

You can go to a relative’s or friend’s home that is out of the storm’s path, or find an area to set up a temporary camp. National or state parks are an option during an emergency, if of course they are not affected by the disaster. There may be utilities available – such as water and electricity – at certain parks. Know the locations of parks in your state or area that can be used. Check ahead of time about using the parks during an emergency, and inquire about “check in” procedures after hours. Some parks may have restricted access, so know before you attempt to use one.

Carry all paperwork pertaining to your home such as insurance and lease agreements. You will need the paperwork to apply for disaster relief, file insurance claims, and you may even need it to prove you live in the community because of a curfew, or if access is restricted to help prevent looting.

Once out of the disaster area, you have to keep in mind that local retail stores and service stations may be short of supplies and fuel, due to the exodus of people fleeing the disaster. You have to be prepared to survive on your own for a few days.

You always have to consider that vehicles may break down, or that roads are impassable. You may have to travel on foot to escape some disasters.

The disaster may be such that your entire city, town, or community becomes a hostile area because of airborne contaminates from a nuclear, chemical, or biological attack, and bugging-out is the only way to save your life. If this is the case, your vehicle may be more of a hindrance when traveling, because of the clogged roadways, bridges, and tunnels. If on foot, you can maneuver around obstacles, and even cross water where you could not otherwise in a vehicle.

Getting ahead of everyone else can solve some of the congestion problem, but once again this means you have to be informed, and can make a decision based on information you gather instead of relying on the authorities to tell you when to leave.

For more information:
Creating an emergency plan
Zombie bug out bag essentials

While the average person can survive up to three weeks without food, you must have nourishment for energy in a survival situation. Lack of energy may mean you cannot perform the necessary tasks needed for survival – such as hiking out of your predicament, or constructing a shelter and finding a reliable source of water. After three days without adequate nourishment, you will begin to feel the effects, which will be physical as well as psychological.

Fish can be caught using your hands, speared, netted, and caught using the traditional baited hook and line. Once you realize your are lost or stranded, you should inventory your supplies for the means in which to fish. In some circumstances you may not have any more than what you are carrying in your pockets, or may happen to have in your vehicle, on a motorcycle, or even on a bicycle.

Using a baited hook and line is the simplest method and is likely to yield the best results. Contrary to what some may believe, successful fishing does not require expensive rods, reels, and watercraft. Fish are attracted to bait – which can be virtually anything – and once they swallow the bait, the hook is what secures the fish to the line. Hooks can be made from pieces of bone, broken buttons, wire, wood and even glass in some cases.

A “gorge hook,” which can be made from bone, wire, buttons, glass or wood.

The hook depicted is made from a one inch piece of wood. The sizes of the hook are dependent upon the fish size, and if unsure of what size, start with a one to two inch piece. Sharpen both ends so that bait can be secured. The idea is to get the fish to swallow or gorge on the entire hook, and from there it is simply a matter of pulling the fish in.

You can make a hook out of a broken button.

Another way to make a hook is to break a large button and sharpen the ends leaving the holes intact so you can attach line. The ends can be scraped on a rough rock or use the file blade on a multi-tool. The end must be shaped so that bait can be secured.

Break apart the tabs from tops of beverage cans using pliers, knives, or rocks to form a hook.

Hooks made from bone, wood, and wire.

You can make a hook from a paperclip, vehicle wiring, and even shards of glass. Make multiple hooks, because it is likely you will lose some, and so you can have several lines in the water at the same time as well.

Once you have the hooks made it is time to find some fishing line. Any type of cordage can be used including shoelaces and strips of clothing twisted into string. Plastic grocery or garbage bags that you may have in your vehicle, or scraps you find on the ground can be cut into thin strips and twisted together to form line. You can use electrical wiring from vehicles and bicycles as well. Certain fibrous plants such as dogbane can also be used for fishing line.

Dogbane.

Dogbane can be found virtually anywhere in a wilderness environment and the dried stalks can be peeled apart into fibrous strands that can be twisted or braided together to make a strong line.

Paracord can be used as fishing line if you remove the braided outer sleeve and unravel the seven inner strands.

Bobbers can be pieces of Styrofoam and even empty capped water bottles. Wrap the line around the neck of the bottle leaving plenty of line to reach into deep pools. The bottle will float on top of the water and it is recommended that you attach some type of weight to the line such as a pebble or other weighted object.

Fishing Bait

Fish are attracted to many things and sometimes it is simply something to grab their attention. They will test the “food” and many times end up swallowing the hook. You can use food scraps, fuzzy seedpods, worms, crickets, and grubs for bait. In some cases, you can use brightly colored pieces of cloth or even Styrofoam as bait if nothing else is available. Live bait is ideal and you should always attempt to find some for best results.

You can use any shiny object as a fishing lure, such as discarded eating spoons, bottle tops, and even pieces of colored glass. Even though the environment you find yourself lost or stranded in looks remote, it is likely that humans have been there, and in many cases will have left debris behind. Carefully look your area over for anything that can be used as line, hooks, and other fishing tackle. In some cases you may find discarded line, hooks, and even poles near large bodies of water left there by some other anglers, or those that may have been lost as well.

Spear Fishing

Fishing spears can be made with a few simple tools and in some cases no tools at all, except for what you find in your environment.

A fishing spear.

Sharpen the end of a sapling using a sharp sliver of stone or knife, and then split the end into prongs using a stone shard and a heavier rock for hammering. A single sharpened end will not always penetrate, which means the fish can get away. You will need multiple sharpened prongs for penetration and securing the catch.

In most cases, you will need to be directly over the fish to plunge the spear versus trying to launch it from any distance. The spear will not be heavy enough, or be balanced properly to throw it at the fish. You want to keep the spear in your hands so you do not lose it or the fish, so you are essentially stabbing down into the water as you stand over the fish.

Hand Fishing

It is recommended that you only hand fish if no other means are available. To catch fish by hand you have to find a relatively deep pool near the bank where fish would gather to hide from predators, or to escape the hot sun. You may also find snakes and snapping turtles nearby as well, so use caution when trying to fish by hand. Reach under the banks to find the fish, and in some cases to secure the fish you may have to place your thumb in their mouths and grab the gills with your other fingers, otherwise they may slip away.

Netting Fish

Fish will gather in deeper pools if the weather is warm, and in shallow areas if it is cold. You can wade into the pools and wait for the silt to settle from the movement, and wait for fish to begin gathering again. You can lay your net along the bottom while you hold on to the handle and lift the netting up as fish swim over it.

A sapling net.

Fish netting made from a supple sapling and string. Ensure the sapling is long enough so you have a handle after bending the end into a hoop. You can use pieces of clothing instead of string to capture the fish. Once the fish is in the netting or clothing work fast to get it to the bank – otherwise the fish will slip from the net. You can essentially “fling” the fish from the netting onto the shore or riverbank.

As stated earlier, all fresh water fish are safe to eat, but they must be thoroughly cooked to destroy any harmful bacteria and parasites that may be present.

Also, don’t feel that you can’t prepare for survival fishing in advance. There are several small kits available that can be placed in a bug out bag, hiking backpack, or automobile as a precautionary measure.

One of the things I’ve been looking into is alternative energy options. I think it’s a great idea to have a backup solution – such as a generator – if the grid goes down, but what I’ve really been wondering is if having a primary system to use, with the grid as a backup to that, is an even better idea. So began my search.

I had two primary questions. First, are such systems practical and reliable? If a solar panel can’t power your lifestyle on a cloudy day, then how much of an advantage is that?

Second, do the economics make sense? In other words, is the money you save over time, combined with the extra reliability in the case of an extended power loss event, more than the cost of setting up such a system?

The first question, it turned out, was answered very straightforwardly. While optimum conditions are bright, sunny days, panels will generate about half output on partly cloudy days, and as little as 5 to 10 percent of maximum in dark overcast conditions.

This isn’t as bad as it sounds. In off-grid places, the panels charge batteries, which compensate for dark days. In on-grid places, the grid electricity makes up for any shortfalls, and during optimum conditions any extra electricity is sent back to the grid while reversing the meter.

So reliability checks out. But what about price?

Well, that’s quite a different story. A full bells-and-whistles professional installation will probably run you at least $20,000. If your electric bill is $50/month, it would take you 40 months, or almost 4 years, to make up the initial cost. That’s not actually that bad, especially if you take out a second mortgage to finance it at a low rate. You may even be qualify for tax credits, reducing the cost further.

I realize, however, that this is not an option for everyone, so I kept looking. This is when I found a few different make-your-own solar panel guides.

They are all DVD courses that promises quite a bit, but the primary idea is that you can set up your own solar panels and wind turbines to create more electricity than you need, for a fraction of the cost of a professional installation, and the electric company will send you a check for the extra power you send them.

It sounds too good to be true, right? That’s exactly what I thought.

Now I have to admit my limitations here. I’m not exactly a handyman. I can fix a leaky sink or running toilet, and on occasion I might even surprise you. In a pinch I could make quite a decent shelter in the woods. But to evaluate a video course’s merits on building a solar power electrical system? No, that’s beyond my ability.

So I found a friend, Jason, and had him check it out for me. Jason is an electrician by trade, and way more handy than me, so I figured this would be a fun project for him.

This is what happened when I interviewed him afterwards:

Me: What were your initial thoughts about the program?

Jason: Well, I don’t deal with solar panels normally, and wanted to figure out how they worked, so I thought this was a good opportunity to do that. The marketing video was really good.

Me: What did you think about the DVD videos?

Jason: The video quality wasn’t very good. It’s pretty much a guy talking into a camcorder he set up on a tripod, and he edited the video himself. And he is terrible at showing you how to do it. There’s one part where he’s teaching you how to make a straight cut, and he screws it up. Then he says that’s okay because it’s not important to get it perfect anyway. Well, if it’s not important, why are you showing me?

Me: Does his process work at least? Would you be able to build your own panels and save lots of money using it?

Jason: Maybe. But his finished product is ugly. If you live around people, you wouldn’t want your neighbors to see this thing on your house. And it doesn’t take into account the time to build one of these things. I figure it would take me 2-4 hours to build the first one, and a bit less once I figured it out. For someone not as handy it could be considerably longer. You probably need 10 of these, at minimum, for a standard house – it’s definitely not a weekend project like he says. So, how much is your time worth?  Plus it leaves out the fact that you will need a professional to connect it to the grid.

Me: Would you recommend it?

Jason: No.  Not to anyone I like, anyway.  There’s no way I would build the panels he shows you. A better option would be just to buy larger, more expensive panels to start with. You could still save probably half price off a professional installation just buying those and having a professional come in for the finishing touches.  There’s a lot of markup in a full professional install.

Me: What about the wind turbines?

Jason: It’s a really long program. It’s like 6 hours long. Plus the guy started to annoy me. I didn’t get through it all.

Me: Last question: Is what he says about getting paid by the electric company for sending them extra electricity true?

Jason: Yes. It’s called ‘net-metering’, and it works. I’ve actually had a few business opportunities come up based around it. Unfortunately, some electric companies have started putting caps in place so that you only get paid for a certain amount of overage, then any extra that you send them is free for them.  I’ve heard of some companies that have stopped sending checks altogether.  So it’s a nice bonus, if you can get it, but to expect a check every month is probably just a dream.

So there you have it.  I hope this helps you think about an approach to solar energy.  I know I didn’t get into the environmental benefits of such a plan, but those are hard to quantify, especially next to numbers that make so much sense, such as expenses and savings.

If you have any questions, feel free to ask them in the comments section.  Jason has a family, so getting answers might take some time, but I will do my best.  If there are any other alternative energy topics you’d like me to look into, leave that in the comments also.

****

PS: After looking into it further, it seems all of these might be made by the same guy.  Beware of anything that sounds too good to be true.

Don’t let the title throw you off – this isn’t just a cookbook.  It’s a guide to learning any skill you want – cooking, sure, but also language learning, shooting a basketball, improving memory, tying knots, or catching pigeons.

In fact, there’s an entire section called The Wild dedicated to teaching you a bunch of ultra useful survival skills.

Here are just a few of the subsections from The Wild:

• How to build a debris hut (p 264)
• The anti-hunter’s first hunt (p 272)
• Nose to tail, A to Z: Learning to butcher (p 342)

While I can’t give you a full review of this book (I have only just ordered it myself!), I can tell you that I do trust the author.

I’ve been a fan of Mr. Ferriss for a couple years now, and bought his previous two books.  I love the way he breaks down difficult problems and makes them easier to digest.

Part of his approach to writing is to give you independent pieces, so that if you are really opposed to one of them, you can ignore it and still get the benefit of the others.  There will definitely be something you can use in this book, regardless of your interests.

You can buy the book through Amazon: The 4-Hour Chef

As it turns out, running for your life is great exercise!  And since all the restaurants will be abandoned, you won’t be eating pizza three times a week anymore.

Worse news is, of course, that most people will be dead or will be zombies.

The better news is that you won’t be a zombie, because you’re fit and lean already, and you’re very capable of pulling yourself up over a fence, or climbing a tree, or outrunning even the quickest of the undead.

You are able to do that all, right?

I’m not saying you need to be able to run 10 miles, or bench 400 pounds, but the reality of the matter is this: some very basic fitness requirements are really, really useful – especially if, you know, there’s an apocalypse going on.

Now, before you click over to Amazon to buy that new exercise program you saw on TV where they run up the walls like they’re in the Matrix, there’s something you should know.

Most of maintaining a healthy weight is eating a proper diet.

Experts have estimated that up to 80% of weight loss is attributed to what you eat.  That means that as little as 20% is a result of exercise.

If that’s true, it makes sense to focus on the bigger number, right?

And you don’t have to clean footprints off your walls!

Now, I know what you’re thinking.

“I’ve tried diets before, and they didn’t work.”

Or, “I’ve tried diets before and it was too much work – cutting up vegetables to put in little bags, and eating 8 times a day doesn’t work for me.”

Maybe even, “I can’t or don’t have time to cook the meals the diet recommends.”

What all of these are really saying is this: “Dieting is too hard!”

And you’re right, in those instances, dieting is too hard.

But, what if dieting could be easy?

What if someone were to bring all your meals right to your door every week, and they were good for you, tasted great, and were affordable?

That would be easy, right?

No going shopping to buy food.  No cooking.  No cutting up celery sticks.  No dirty dishes.

You would never have to think about what’s for dinner.

And as busy as you already are, having one less thing to think about is pretty nice.

Restaurant-quality meals, delivered to your door, for about $20 per day – that’s what Diet-to-Go offers.

You’re probably thinking this all sounds too good to be true.  This must just be another fad diet that lets you lose 10 pounds the first week, but then you plateau – and eventually gain it all back (with interest) when you give up.

Well, you’re right – you will plateau, but there’s a big difference between Diet-to-go and a fad diet.

With Diet-to-Go you’re not tricking your body into temporary weight loss, or dehydrating yourself to lose water weight.

Meals are nutritionally balanced, and properly portioned.  You’re actually eating healthy for a change.  So when you plateau, you’ll be able to stick with it and not give up, because you won’t feel like you’re depriving yourself to begin with.

There’s no long-term commitments – you can cancel anytime.  And there’s a 100% satisfaction guarantee if you’re not absolutely thrilled by the food.

There are 3 menu plans to choose from: traditional, vegetarian, and low-carb.  And you can substitute out any meals you don’t like, or can’t eat if you are allergic to something.

Shipping is available only to the US contiguous 48 states due to restrictions and transit times, and local fresh pickup locations are available in VA, DC, MD, PA, NJ & CA.

If you’re interested in becoming a new you, avoiding health problems, and avoiding becoming a zombie, I recommend you get Diet-to-Go today!

Click this link to get 15% off your first order. Save 15% on Any Order Size – Coupon Code: CJ15P

If you need something cut, stabbed, slashed, flayed, or chopped, you rely on your knife.

Of course, there are specialized tools like machetes, hatchets, and throwing knives for certain tasks too.

Luckily, BudK carries them all, at everyday low prices, which get even lower if you buy more.

Bowie Knives, Survival Knives, Pocket Knives and Tactical Knives – Thousands to Choose From & Lowest Price Guaranteed at BUDK.com!

The human-powered K-Tor charger is portable, and uses a standard 120 volt socket (Euro adapter available).

It can charge your cell phone, e-reader, iPod, iPad, camera, and GPS.

Check it out by clicking the button below!

Running time: 96 minutes | IMDB Rating: 5.9 | Genre: Action, Horror, Sci-Fi | Release: September 2012
Director: Paul W. S. Anderson
Cast: Milla Jovovich, Sienna Guillory, Michelle Rodriguez, Bingbing Li
ZSG Rating: 5/10

Synopsis (from IMDB): Alice fights alongside a resistance movement in the continuing battle against the Umbrella Corporation and the undead.

My Review

You know those cut scenes in video games, where you get the basics of the plot in a short movie, and then you play through all the mindless killing of monsters so you can get to the next cut scene, and next segment of the storyline?

Well, this movie was the exact opposite of that.

It’s a 90 minute clip of watching someone play a video game level where he has to kill a load of zombies and get to a helicopter.

I’m serious, that’s pretty much it.

There are some highlights, though.

The first intro played backwards was cool.  The second intro was awesome.  The “second intro” part will make sense when you see it.

That’s about it for highlights.

But, what I found most interesting is that I wasn’t bored.  It was non-stop action, without much acting, and while there was nothing special throughout, the movie itself flew by.

Plus I’m pretty much a sucker for a bunch of hot chicks kicking ass.

There was also a between-the-lines plot tidbit most reviews on IMDB seem to miss: it would seem that the Umbrella Corporation isn’t the bad guy, but just the facilitator.  Watch out for that.

You get told at the end of the movie that the resistance group are preparing to make their last stand.  Guess there will be at least 1 more movie.

If you’re a true fan, you’ll watch this anyway.  If you’re not a true fan, but think you probably need to watch it in case you want to see the next one – just watch the trailer and save yourself 94 minutes.

Here’s to hoping the next movie has a storyline!

Trailer

Zombie Details

Cause of: T-Virus
Special abilities: Weird mutations, pretty much a recap of all previously seen in the series
Weapons used against: Mostly guns – which magically appear when you’ve run out of ammo.  Again, this is obviously a video game you’re watching.

Of course, there are a few other reasons to love this time of year, too – football is back (with real refs!), every treat imaginable now comes in pumpkin flavor, and every zombie fans favorite holiday is right around the corner!

Since this is a site about zombies, we’ll just focus on the Halloween part.  Specifically, here are a couple ideas to help you celebrate a bit more creatively this year.

Lawnpocalypse!

Just putting a few zombie lawn gnomes in your yard is sooooo 2011.  No, just like all outdoor decorating holidays, you need to out-duel your neighbors in a nuclear arms race for turf supremacy.

So, this year, it’s gnome zombies vs gnome survivors in an epic battle on your lawn!  Shit just got real.

These nifty guys are being sold by thorssoli on Etsy, and are an obvious answer to any zombie threat that might come your way.

Now all you need to do is set up an outdoor speaker playing sounds from a Rambo movie or something similar, and set up a few landmines.  That will show those trick-or-treaters you mean business!

Okay, so according to my legal team, you should probably leave out the landmines.  And I won’t even suggest replacing them with trip wires and a siren, or a laser grid.  That would be improper of me.

Instead of those, I’ll just suggest a warning sign:

Party like it’s the end of the world!

Now that your outdoor decor is covered, it’s time to move inside for a rocking zombie-themed party.

And I’m talking about an adult party here.  Look elsewhere for the kid’s games.

So, first things first – you’ll need some music.  In keeping with the theme, how about some Rob Zombie?

Next, you’ll want to exalt the guest of honor, alcohol!

To zombie up the staples, you can use these zombie beer openers, and zombie wine bottle stoppers.

Also, consider a rum punch, seeing as how zombies and Haitian sugarcane plantations are inextricably linked, and of course rum is made from sugarcane.  And could there be a better way to serve such a punch, than in a zombie punch bowl?

Yeah, okay, it says it’s a cookie jar, but that’s a minor technicality once there’s punch in it.

Oh, and don’t forget the brain shaped ice cubes.  Yep, you read that right.

If your friends are a bit of a rowdier crowd (mine are), you might want to check out these shotgun shell shot glasses.  These are just all around cool.

I have to be honest with you though – when it comes to food I don’t recommend getting creative.  Nothing should be green, slimy, or gelatinous unless you’re serving jello shots.

Stick with things you can prepare in a large batch to serve a lot of people.  Pasta, chicken wings, chili, tacos, kabobs, etc can all be prepped ahead of time and finished last minute, or cooked the day before and just reheated.

Don’t over-complicate the food.  Save that energy for clean up.

Lastly, you’ll need some sort of entertainment.

Unfortunately, zombie strippers aren’t for everyone.  Maybe that’s a good thing, considering how the vampire stripper thing went in From Dusk Til Dawn.

Maybe something just as fun, but a bit less risque?

Well, you can transform any standard card-based drinking game into a zombie card drinking game.  Pretty basic, but I have a feeling zombie beer pong would get very sloppy very quickly.

And if you’re a bit more geeky…

The always popular Munchkin line of card games has a Zombies version, for 3-6 players and takes 1 hour to complete according to the box (probably more if you’ve been drinking).

Or, for 2-4 players there’s a Walking Dead board game, in which you can play as survivors or zombies.  And of course you could supplement this by hosting your own marathon of the TV series.  Season 1 and season 2 are available to stream right from Amazon, and with season 3 scheduled to premiere on October 14th, you’ll be able to catch up any stragglers mid-season.

Are you excited yet?

Running around flailing your arms is not the right way to try and get attention.  Most likely you’ll lose focus, and you’ll get yourself eaten doing that.

There’s a key concept I want you to remember running through all of the following techniques: contrast.  Humans pick up on what’s different, what sticks out.  That’s what you want to provide, so you can make it easier on them to rescue you.

That’s not always the most obvious idea when tension is high.

Smoke signals

Probably the oldest way to signal distress is through smoke and/or fire.  It provides something to see, as well as something to smell, and always seems to capture the attention of anyone near.  I’m not sure if zombies are attracted to fire, but if they aren’t this is probably your best bet  to signal for help.  The caveat is, of course, that if you are in an area with lots of fires burning out of control, this method becomes useless to you.

Need help starting a fire?

Light

At night, a light source, such as a flashlight, is very easy to pick up against the darkness.  During the day, you can use a reflective surface like a mirror, foil, a shiny rock, a piece of metal – in short, whatever is available that will reflect the sun’s rays.  Just make sure not to blind your rescuer while trying to get their attention.  The best part about these is that they make no noise to attract zombies.

Whistles

Many survival packs come with whistles.  They can be used to signal anyone around, and serve a dual function to scare off animals like bears.  Unfortunately a whistle will probably attract zombies, too.  Of course, if you were to set a trap, and then lure them to it like the pied piper of the undead… Hmm…

Flares

There are two types of flares.  The type you see at night that produce a bright light so you can avoid something, and another type that produces a colored smoke that can be easily seen during the day.  Pretty handy to have around.

Signs

The universal help signal is a large X.  If you were holing up in a Wal-Mart, for instance, it might be a good idea to make an X on the roof in your spare time.  Or at least in the parking lot.  Just remember the contrast – if the asphalt is black, try to make a white X to stand out, and vice versa.

Flags

I don’t necessarily mean a formal flag here.  Anything that you can hang, or waive around will be much more effective at catching eyeballs.  Waiving a pole with some sort of colorful banner will be much more effective than waiving your arms.  Same thing if you hang a few makeshift flags up.  You have both the color and the movement of the flag to get someone’s attention.

Technology

Assuming you have batteries, and assuming at least one other person does to, your technology can still help you.  This could be a cellphone, or a ham radio – whatever you have.  It’s always worth a shot.

Photo credit: bossco