The G.O.O.D. Board Game Review

I can't remember the last time I played a board game. It may have been 40 years ago, playing Clue, or Monopoly, long before I discovered computers & computer games. I don't know why it's been so long. Board Games are great family fun. It's something everyone can get involved with, sitting around the dining room table. Something to enjoy that doesn't involve a TV remote control or internet access.

So when I got the call that I got a Board Game heading my way to review, I was a bit reluctant at first. After so many years, so many other after-dinner pastimes, so many internet or electronic games, this one better be good. Turned out it was. It was The G.O.O.D. Game.

The G.O.O.D. Game, a.k.a  The "Get Out Of Dodge" Game, lived up to it's title. It was adventure, it was survival, it was hilarious.

Imagine Monopoly for a Zombie Apocalypse, or The Game of Life where a box of MRE's is worth more than your penthouse apartment in the city. In this game, you NEED to flee the city. Civilization has collapsed, you need to bug out with only what few supplies you can carry or scrounge along the way, to your safe house in the hills.  But along the way, you need to watch out! So many traps await you, you could wind up arrested in a FIMA Camp, or starving on top of Freeze Your A** Pass.

You'll use your wits, your luck, & occasionally your skill at bartering, to see your way through. It's ultimately the roll of the dice that'll determine if you're lucky enough to survive your journey, to make it to your bug out haven in the hills.

Amazing that Susan Kellerman-Hogue, the designer of The G.O.O.D. Game, could make S.H.T.F. an entertaining board game, but she certainly did, with tongue-in-cheek humor too. A few left-handed social comments thrown in the game along the way will have you giggling in your Flak Vest as you move your player piece along the board. BTW, since this IS a game of survival, you make your OWN game piece. Just be sure whoever uses a live .50 FMJ round as their game piece, gets first roll.

The Game Board is large & hilariously illustrated. The gameplay is roll the dice & land on a space, if it tells you to follow the instructions on the included "Determiner" Card, you'll do what the card says. It's pure luck if the outcome helps your cause or beats you bloody, you just have to take your turn to find out. Land on a space along with another player you can barter your gear. But be careful, one's man's treasure may be what you NEED the next turn you take. Ultimately, one person will get through & win, but along the way a whole evening will be spent in fun-filled survival & a battle of wits.  NOTE: Contains some Politically Incorrect Material & Some Harsh Language. 

Yes, I got to say it's been at least 40 years since I last played a board game. But I'm glad the long dry spell is over, & it was by a good board game I got to play. The G.O.O.D. Game.

Alpha Bravo Creations: Tactical Hand Signals & Phonetic Alphabet Flash Cards

I'm to review Flashcards teaching Army Hand signals & the Phonetic Alphabet?

When I received this assignment, I was skeptical. Certainly, communications modes are a specialty I'm familiar with, but I'm no Platoon Leader, and my days of playing Army Man is a bit behind me. Besides, this is a review of kids flashcards, my last dealing with was in learning math in grade school.
But I was surprised when I examined the deck of cards of the Phonetic Alphabet, I immediately got the concept & it's potential. Then, when I tried out the deck of Army Hand signals & American Sign Language, it struck me that these flashcards are invaluable for not just kids, but for adults too.

Communication in it's purest sense is simply transferring information from one place to another by any means necessary, either verbally, or non-verbally. So while from the standpoint of preparedness, the ability to convey information clearly & accurately is paramount, the ability to also do so silently can be vital.
So here's where these flashcards come in handy, (pardon the pun).
Use of hand signals offers clear communication totally unspoken, as any misbehaving youngster frozen in mid-frolic by Mom & Dad pointing at them sternly can attest. Message CLEARLY conveyed.

Each flashcard offers a term or statement with an illustration of it's accompanying hand gesture. There's also directions on how to do the gesture.  By learning to recognize the gestures and connect it to the word or statement, standard terms & gestures can be strung together to make whole sentences or concepts. By repetition of using these cards anyone can become proficient in using hand signals.
Like I said... very handy.
It didn't take long at all for this old dog to learn some new tricks, not long at all.
Hand gestures can be very useful...(bet you thought I'd say HANDY again), if ever I'd be in a situation where I NEED to communicate without speaking a word. Serious stuff, like  HURRY! THIS WAY to the RALLY POINT.
While Alpha Bravo's Hand Signals for Kids helps kids add realism to their playacting, what you can learn from them can be a vital aid for anyone in a disaster to emergency.

Next came the deck of flashcards teaching the Phonetic Alphabet.
If you've ever seen a Cop show on TV or a Hollywood Blockbuster War Movie, someone is always talking over a microphone saying stuff like"Foxtrot Uniform Bravo Alpha Romeo"...or some sort of drivel. It's not heatstroke that's got the actor talking gibberish, it's a PHONETIC ALPHABET used to verbalize individual letters, using spoken words. Tango is the letter "T", India the letter "I", Charlie the letter "C", and so on. Using phonetics is handy when noise conditions make it hard to discern single letters. Sounds like "Eee" & "Tee" &"Cee" can often be misheard in a noisy location. So by attributing a word starting with the letter, it's easier to understand because you're more likely to hear parts of a word and mentally fill in the blanks.
With the Phonetic Alphabet Flashcards,  Alpha Delta Creations has presented each letter with a picture symbol, depicting the word, as well as it's corresponding Morse Code symbol.

HUH! What? Morse Code? Hams do Morse code! Heck, even Rambo tapped out Morse code to send a message in one of his movies! Morse Code is HANDY!

While not a requirement any longer to know Morse Code, it's still a widely popular mode of communication in Ham Radio, the dots & dashes all to be heard & deciphered when signal conditions are so poor that vocal speech is "in the mud" & unrecognizable.
I know very well the phonetic alphabet, but I never acquired Morse Code. So now, armed with a set of flash cards depicting them, I bet picking up the code could be just as easy as picking up these cards. Or better yet, it'll be CHILD'S PLAY.

My review started out skeptical, but I quickly came around. I seriously suggest getting your kids these flashcards & using them yourself. Who says kids get to do all the fun? In fact, make learning how to do Tactical Hand Signaling AND the Phonetic Alphabet & Morse Code a family fun project. One that may pay SERIOUS dividends later.
(I almost forgot... did anybody catch the reference of "Foxtrot, Uniform, Bravo, Alpha, Romeo"? Learn the Phonetic Alphabet & watch Saving Private Ryan again till you do. )
LEARN MORE or ORDER a set of flashcards, visit Alpha Bravo Creations Website. www.alphabravocreations.com

goTenna™ A Magic Wand Enabling Smartphone Texting

Had the pleasure to check out some new technology that enables you to send & receive text messages on a smartphone, without need of cell towers or a wifi hotspot. I used a magic wand... a goTenna. In the race to develop additional communication capability for smartphones, goTenna has taken a simple approach, and has crossed the finish line with a winner.

Here's the problem... smartphones turn to dumb bricks when cell & wifi service is gone.  While a bunch of products have attempted to marry alternative communication like two-way radio to the smartphone platform, trying to add an additional layer of technology is problematic. We've seen prototypes of handheld radios glommed onto backs of smartphones, only to see them fall victim to ever changing smartphone technology, falling short in keeping up with the endless parade of new models & new hardware.

Magic Wand?

But goTenna took a different tack... make a simple device to establish an independent peer to peer communication mode. Instead of adding something new to smartphones, goTenna simply enables smartphones to do what does already... send & receive text...and enables it to do so when it can't be done through normal means.

A goTenna is a cognitive digital radio combined with an app that generates its own signal and automatically coordinates with other units within range. It does all the heavy-lifting, so you can chat 1-to-1, with a group, or even broadcast openly to anyone nearby. Distance is it's only limitation. The goTenna has a VHF signal in the unlicensed portion of the MURS band, transmitting 2 watts, so location, elevation, & surroundings are the only unknown variables where range is concerned. Still, you may count on 1 to 3 miles as typical. In my case, out on the bike trail I got just over 2 miles away before I lost connectivity to my other goTenna, although it was more due to terrain than distance. If I was on flat ground I would have likely got further.

Couldn't be any simpler...

Being a text only device, goTenna is not hamstrung by bandwidth & power needs that voice and imagery require.  And since the link between goTenna & smartphone is via bluetooth, any bluetooth equipped smartphone can use a goTenna. You install the free goTenna app available for Android or iOS, pair with the goTenna device, and you're sending & receiving text with other goTenna equipped smartphones.

The goTenna is packaged in pairs, so you have an alternative text communication method for you and one other right out of the box. You're not limited to just that pair of goTennas, you can broadcast to any goTenna within range. There's future potential with the technology to establish a mesh network, and goTenna maintains the capability lies in further development. In the meantime, this magic wand device offers you a way to stay in contact using your smartphone, when everyone else is carrying bricks seeking a cell signal or wifi hotspot.

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Crank Brothers M-19 Multitool Review

Making the case to take up bicycling again was a no brainer... I needed to get back in shape & it's a great low-impact sport that only requires a little exercise, includes beautiful scenery, and once you learn, you never forget how to ride. Plus, it fits the self-reliant philosophy of reliable sustainable transportation.
Getting my 30 year old road bike ride-worthy is one thing, KEEPING it ride worthy ON THE ROAD is another. I need tools to take with me as I ride, otherwise I'd risk hiking back home, lugging a broken bike.

Fortunately there's a wide selection of handy multitools available for cyclists,as an alternative to towing a roll-around tool box. This review is of one of these mini-wonders that for me, offers the most bang for the buck...(definitely a "best bang for the buck" kind of guy)

There are cheaper & more expensive tools, but one brand in particular... Crank Brothers... is the cream that rises to the top of the Cycling Industry, offering serious top-grade bike parts, accessories & tools, and of their multi-tools, one model offers the most tools of all... the M-19.
Imagine carrying all common metric allen wrenches, bristol keys, phillips & straight screwdrivers, 2 nut wrenches, a chain breaker, and all the common spoke wrenches that fit most bicycles, and fit them all in your pocket. That, in a nutshell, is what the M-19 delivers, in a package smaller than your wallet, WITHOUT taking a big bite out of it too!
I'm ready for the road, now that I got me a pocket FULL of tools!  available here