The proverbial desert island

[Deviant Ollam]

...and thread. You can never run out of fun uses for thread.

you know, after i posted i was going to edit it and mention certain indespensable items simply for survival... like a mutli-tool (letherman or a gerber), a rechargable flashlight (those little numbers that you shake up are pretty badass), waterproof matches and/or a magnesium stone, and a sewing kit. just the other day on the train to new york i repaired the shoulder strap on my satchel when i noticed it was about to fray apart. made me damn glad i had the needle and thread.

[TheCotMan]

You are going to be out of circulation for a year. No computer. No Internet. No Defcon. You only have one cargo pocket on your pants leg. Whatever you load in it will have to feed your mind for one year.

What do you carry?

#1) Some solar powered system to evaporate (salt) water and condense into another container so I could have fresh water on this "desert island" (No brain to feed after a few days of no water. No water? No brain to feed due to no fresh water.)
#2) Leatherman/Swiss Arm Knife/GP Tool to make nets/spears/cages necessary to catch fish, shellfish, lobster, crabs, etc to eat. (No food, no *real* food for brain.)
#3) Survival Book, or if survival tips are known, a multi-pantheon book of mythology across all sorts of cultures in a small font printed book, or on a PDA with one of those portable solar power flat panels. If you are on an island with many people, late night campfire stories or entertainment can really help keep people sane and remind them that they are civilized.
#4) Foreign Language Books: feed your brain with knowledge on other languages-- not everyone with a ship to rescue you will speak English.
("Look at the crazy gringo! He is gesturing hello to us. Everyone wave back as we leave him to his privacy on his island.")

[astcell]

Hmmm, I never did finish the Iliad and Odyssey from my college days. Maybe "Atlas Shrugged" by Ayn Rand too?

Survival items unnecessary. Mind food only. Okay imagine if you are going to jail in solitary confinement if it is easier.

Books on other languages... I tried this once, it's very hard to study Russian by a book only. :>

[[Syntax]]

Id carry some type of PDA, like a iPaq with a few Compaq Flash cards, 4gig each loaded with a ton of ebooks, mp3s ect.. you can easily fit more text than you can read in a year on 1 4gig card. Also a solar panel battery charger so I could recharge it. Id have audio, video and text, a place to keep a journal, a calander, a clock. I could load games onto it, even a couple movies.

[TheCotMan]

Survival items unnecessary. Mind food only. Okay imagine if you are going to jail in solitary confinement if it is easier.

Well, then, perhaps a book from loompanics on how to escape from controlled custody. ;-)

More seriously, pencil and paper are both great! See if you can sign up with an Inter-Library Loan system to request books as you need then, take note, write to loved ones back home and get word on what is happening in the real world-- and send you packs of smokes as a de facto currency while you are doing your time.

Mythology is not just limited to Greek and Roman stories. American Indian stories can also be good, as well as folklore from the American West. Scandanavian mythology can be amazing too.

Maybe you can write you own stories?

The Art of War is a great, and small book to help you to understand how to get along with your "inmates." (heh heh)

[not5150]

You are going to be out of circulation for a year. No computer. No Internet. No Defcon. You only have one cargo pocket on your pants leg. Whatever you load in it will have to feed your mind for one year.

What do you carry?

Sony Librie (hacked to get past the DRM)

http://www.makezine.com/blog/archive...ibrie_hac.html


Buy batteries at the PX or use a solar charger...

Oh... strike the PX comment

[audit]

I'll add a loop in this, something that you can carry on with you on a plane.

[B1shop]

I know

Inflatable raft and a mirror.

The raft to get back home. the mirror as a signalling tool.

[skroo]

Porn on microfiche and a magnifying glass.

[astcell]

Porn on microfiche and a magnifying glass.

NOW we're talking!!!!

[KeLviN]

a small misical instrument (harmonica?). unlike a book, every time you reuse it, its better and different. if all i did all day for a year was play an instrument, i'd get pretty damn good. and that skill can also come home with me.

[Siviak]

Inflatable raft ....

kick ass!!!! I am going to try and take an inflatabl raft on the plane with me later this month... and one of my life preservers... I wonder what they'll say.... I wonder if I can get my Geiger counter onboard as well....

[ictus]

1) a small philips
2) a small flathead
3) a safety pin
4) paper and pen--outlet for the imagination
5) "Escape from Colditz"--how to use anything from sawdust to newspaper clippings to escape
6) "Robinson Crusoe"--how to build rafts, scale walls, escape cannibals, you name it
7) a book on ADA

[stringslayer]

My question would be , which island?
Some have cell coverage. If so, I would take a cell phone and call somebody to snatch my dependent ass off that island.
If no coverage, I would go with Skroo's idea.

[TheCotMan]

My question would be , which island?
Some have cell coverage. If so, I would take a cell phone and call somebody to snatch my dependent ass off that island.
If no coverage, I would go with Skroo's idea.

Alcatraz! Yep. The desert island is a fedeeral prison that was just re-activated for this question. You may have cell coverage, but the guards have guns Heh-heh, hrm. Guns are cool and stuff!

Seriously though, he changed the story from desert island to a prison.