The Rugged Life

Become self-reliant, live off the land, and be prepared for the unexpected in this modern guide to self-sufficiency and homesteading from New York Times bestselling author, retired Navy SEAL, and survival skills expert Clint Emerson. “Add The Rugged Life by former Navy SEAL Clint Emerson to your library today and get on the path to independence and self-sufficiency.”—Jack Carr, Navy SEAL Sniper and #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Devil’s Hand Clint Emerson is the go-to expert for surviving the first minutes, hours, and days of a crisis. Now, in The Rugged Life, he works with modern homesteading experts to show you how to thrive over the long-term—for months, years, or even a lifetime—by being prepared and self-sufficient. You can live the Rugged Life completely off-the-grid by farming your own food and using the waste from your toilet for compost. Or, you can live it by adding solar panels to your suburban home and keeping chickens and bees in your backyard. You can even live the Rugged Life in a city by simply gathering the salad for tonight’s dinner from your windowsill garden. Each of these homesteading and prepper long-term survival skills stand on their own, and taken together, they can help you design the independent life you want for yourself and your family. • Be your own homesteader: Make your own shampoo and face creams; pickle and ferment food; make natural bug spray and cleaning products; smoke meat; tan a hide • Be your own protector: Create a last-resort emergency plan; gather medicinal plants; protect against dangerous animals and threats; understand survival first aid • Be your own provider: Hunt for game; make a gillnet; set snares; forage for wild foods; build a rabbit hutch; ice fish; butcher a pig; keep bees • Be your own builder: Retrofit a van; set up solar, microhydro, and geothermal power; create a water catchment and filtration system; build a shipping container home • Be your own farmer: Grow a victory garden; build a greenhouse; waffle garden to save space and resources; build a root cellar; can, dry, and store crops; operate a tractor With hundreds of step-by-step, illustrated, self-sustaining skills and projects, The Rugged Life is for everyone who feels they can use more adventure, freedom, and choice in their life—everyone ready to get out of their comfort zone and try new, hard, profoundly rewarding things.

Clint Emerson, retired Navy SEAL and author of the bestselling 100 Deadly Skills, presents an explosive, darkly funny, and often twisted account of being part of an elite team of operatives whose mission was to keep America safe by whatever means necessary. Clint Emerson is the only SEAL ever inducted into the International Spy Museum. Operating from the shadows, with an instinct for running towards trouble, his unique skill set made him the perfect hybrid operator. Emerson spent his career on the bleeding edge of intelligence and operations, often specializing in missions that took advantage of subterfuge, improvisation, the best in recon and surveillance tech to combat the changing global battlefield. MacGyvering everyday objects into working spyware was routine, and fellow SEALs referred to his activities simply as “special shit.” His parameters were: find, fix, and finish—and of course, leave no trace. The Right Kind of Crazy is unlike any military memoir you’ve ever read because Emerson is upfront about the fact that what makes you a great soldier and sometimes hero doesn’t always make you the best guy—but it does make for damn good stories.

Have you ever dreamed about owning your own business? Maybe becoming a market disruptor? Would you know where to start? Do you have a coach, a mentor, or a teacher who can show you how? Well, now you do. If we are lucky, we have been taught to dream since the time we were very young. If we are luckier still, we have also been taught to establish a sturdy foundation for those dreams to stand upon. When building the business you’ve always dreamed of, you must first establish a rock-solid foundation, something I’ve learned from many years of experience as a Rugged Entrepreneur. What is a “Rugged Entrepreneur”? It’s what I call a special breed of entrepreneur. Ruggeds make the leap toward success in a way that separates them from the millions who fall short because they invest the time and effort to develop and hone the specific set of powerful skills you’ll discover in these pages. I’ve identified four elements to becoming a Rugged Entrepreneur. These elements can be developed by anyone and are helpful to every type of entrepreneur. But all four of them are necessary to do the job well. The Four Foundational Elements of being a Rugged Entrepreneur are: A fervent work ethic A humble and healthy pride (what I call “Rugged Pride”) Fortitudo mentis (aka, mental toughness) Faith The Rugged Entrepreneur provides a roadmap to your journey of lasting self-discovery. It’s about identifying and acquiring the skills to achieve sustained success and to build on top of that success. It’s about passionately pursuing a productive business life for yourself and your family using the economic engines accessible to us all. But be warned: do not read this book if you do not want to be challenged.

Sage: a venerable, wise man, judicious; and aromatic plant with grayish-green leaves used as seasoning; the healing plant; the herb of happiness. Lenny and her sister were as close as two sisters could be. Their mother died when Lenny was fourteen, and Lenny took on the role of caretaker, tending her eight-year-old sister and the herb garden their mother left behind. The garden was just about the only thing that brought joy to the desolate farm until a handsome stranger rode through on his way to Missouri. The mysterious man stayed a while to help their pa rebuild the storm-damaged barn, and his presence on the farm led to an event that changed all their lives. Thirty-three years later, Lenny's younger sister receives a mysterious package. When she opens the green velveteen hatbox, the smell of sage overwhelms her. But what's more, she realizes the box contains the missing pieces of her puzzled life. Soon she finds answers and learns that things were not always as they appeared as Lenny's story unfolds before her eyes. Will these discoveries bring closure after all these years? Can sage truly bring the sisters healing and happiness? Set in the beautiful Ozark mountains of Missouri, Sage is a historical novel highlighted by the mighty men and women who forged a wilderness. These early settlers demonstrated courage only surpassed by their determination when faced with a war between the states and the lifelong wars that raged within. Debora Clark and her husband, Jim, enjoy the nature and beauty of the rugged hills, the scenic Ozarks, from their porch swing in Alton, Missouri. They are thankful for their many blessings. Sage is the first book in Debora's series, In the Rugged Hills.

June 1934: the depths of the Great Depression. Reckless with anger and spoiling for a fight, seventeen-year-old Samuel Hewitt and his Shuswap friend Charleyboy conspire to steal a prize stallion and disappear into the blistered, unforgiving terrain of British Columbia’s Thompson River Valley. The boys are looking for a fresh start—and for somewhere to belong. But what they find is a hardscrabble existence enlivened by ruthless criminals and boxcar bums ... until they come upon the denizens of a once-majestic travelling circus struggling to survive in an era in which even marvels have lost their capacity to charm. In this surreal, ramshackle environment, Samuel develops an unexpected kinship with the failing ringmaster and his enigmatic daughter. But violence and treachery are prevalent in the shadows of the Big Top, and Samuel may well find himself on the run once more. In The Ballad of Samuel Hewitt, Nick Tooke presents an uncommon coming-of-age story as well as a thoughtful examination of the meaning of home and family.

From 1919 to 1970, Olaf Hanson was a trapper, trader, prospector, game guardian, fisherman, and road blasting expert in northeastern Saskatchewan. He told his life story to popular Saskatchewan author A. L. Karras, whose manuscript, written in the 1980s, only came to light after his death in 1999. In an uncompromising, straightforward style, Karras and Hanson reveal the geography, wildlife, and natural history of the region as well as the business and social interactions between people. The book offers a look at the vanished subsistence and commercial economy of the boreal forest, wound around a fascinating personal story of courage and physical stamina.

A hands-on, practical survival guide from retired Navy SEAL Clint Emerson, from eluding pursuers, evading capture, and surviving dangerous situations.

Connor's book, Rugged Discipleship, is a unique, fun and motivating fusion of Biblical principles, adventure literature and travelogue while always encouraging the reader to be and make rugged disciples. The writer introduces us to the North Georgia mountains, a wee village in Scotland, jumping trains to Canada, adventures in India, mysterious friends in Cambodia- from wild skydivers and a motorcycle stolen in Bulgaria. Each story reveals something Connor has learned through failures and successes in the context of working with people. The lessons learned have something of the radiance of Divine leading and purpose shining through. An inspiring Read. - Dr. Jerry Root, Author and C.S. Lewis scholar, Professor Wheaton College and Bill Graham Center of Evangelism.