Staying Out Of Sight, Sometimes In Plain Sight-Aftermath Bob

Staying Out Of Sight, Sometimes In Plain Sight

Lets face it, there may well be times when you don't want to be seen. Naturally that is why soldiers and hunters wear camouflage. While that works well out in the woods, it makes you stand out like a sore thumb in town. Even worse, it could make your own people mistake you for any unfriendly sorts of people that are around and will identify you as someone of interest to those same unfriendly people. So lets take these one at a time.

Out in the woods camo is going to be a very good friend. I've heard stories, while I was in the service, of men so well camouflaged that their enemy passed within scant feet of them and never knew they were there. I have had things almost as close happen to me while I was in the service. (A couple of yards in my case.) So what makes good camouflage? Of course you can buy and might even have right now camo in your B.O.B. and at a distance that is often enough. But it doesn't make you invisible. By breaking off branches from bushes in the area and attaching them randomly to your body, you will blend in much better with your surroundings. And I do mean bushes. A tree branch at ground level looks out of place and attracts unwanted attention. The key here is RANDOMLY. Walk outside to a wooded area and take a look for yourself. The trees and bushes there do not grow in a uniform pattern. You will see a clump of bushes here and there, and maybe a lone bush by it's self with open spaces between them. They grow wherever they want to or can. You will have to do the same with whatever you attach to your body.

Second point, I know that a lot of places sell kits with a camo crème like substance in a nice little plastic box. I prefer the old fashioned camo stick. The reason for that is that it doesn't wear off as fast, and it is almost impossible to sweat it off. I can't say that for the cremes I've seen other people use. When you apply the stick or crème, you once again do it randomly, but with something of a pattern. The boney areas of your face and hands tend to reflect light more easily that the areas with soft tissue. So, apply the darker colors to these 'high shine' areas, and the lighter colors to the softer places. Your forehead, bridge of the nose, point of your chin, knuckles and fingers are 'high shine' areas. Your cheeks, forearms and upper lip are 'low shine' areas. But remember even these need to be broken up with the other colors. Nothing is uniform so don't make the mistake of painting yourself up that way.

Of course it is desired that you never have someone looking for you to get that close. But it could happen, so here is something to remember. Most people, even trained soldiers, look AT bushes, they don't look THROUGH them. They see this side of the bush but fail to look through any thin or open areas to see what is on the other side of that bush. So if you are all camoed up and have a bush or two between you and them AND if you remain motionless, there is a very good chance that you will never be spotted.

Another point about staying out of sight in the woods. Avoid things like nylon and Velcro. When you are moving through the bush nylon just doesn't sound the same as a natural fiber, and sounds go a long way in the quiet of the outdoors. The same holds true for Velcro. That ripping sound it makes when you open something, be it a pocket or an ammo pouch, is not a normal sound that you will hear in nature. It attracts unwanted attention. True it may be more secure than buttons or some type of natural cloth material stuck in a loop, but the natural materials don't make un-natural sounds. And sound is very important when you want to stay out of sight.

Now let us say that for whatever reason you are in a city or town. The first thing to remember is actually the same. Blend in with whatever is around you. If everyone else is in jeans and a checkered shirt, do you really want to be dressed in a suit? These will be times when people are just trying to make it from one day to the next. After a very short time you will find that people will be dressing just like in a very old song called 'Sunday Morning Coming Down'. The man sang about looking through his closet to find his cleanest dirty shirt. In a disaster situation it is very possible that they will be no clean or running water. Think Katrina in New Orleans. Washing clothes will be something done on an irregular basis at best. You don't want to stand out by looking all clean and spiffy as you walk down the street. Not only will it get you noticed by those unfriendly types, you will also be noticed by the other people around you. That is going to make them think you have something they don't. They are going to want it and won't be afraid of trying to take it from you. As they say, when you have nothing to lose, you have nothing to lose. I don't care if you are trying to score points with the most attractive person you've ever seen and want to impress them with your ability to provide for them. Do that in private behind closed doors, not in public.

If you are one of the fortunate and have been eating good healthy meals while most of the people around you are eating what they can find, when they can find it, you are going to be in better shape than they are, That will be reflected in your posture, the way you walk and just about everything else about you. Fake it. If other people are shuffling along half starved to death like zombies, you walk the same way. Do nothing to let anyone know there is anything different about you. It will save you a great deal of trouble. If nobody else has power or lights, okay maybe you don't have a generator. But you do have oil lamps and a supply of oil for them. Hang thick blankets over the windows at night or other times of limited light. Think thunder storms. To hide in plain sight YOU MUST look and acy like everyone else around you.

Jul 26, 2019

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