BLACK FRIDAY 🔥 UP TO 55% OFF SITEWIDE. No coupon needed. Price as marked.

BLACK FRIDAY 🔥 UP TO 55% OFF SITEWIDE. No coupon needed. Price as marked.

THE LOOP
Jeff

Chapter 1:

Reading happens to be something that I'll pick up in bursts and then set aside for a while. Maybe I go through two books and really enjoy them, and then I won't happen to think about or open one for a couple months. I wonder if it might be my inner-rebel telling me that reading is boring because I was told to do it in school or else I would be negatively impacted. 

 

When I hear it like Mr. Twain puts it, though, it makes me stop and honestly be so thankful for the ability to do it. What if I couldn't? What the heck would I be able to get done if I couldn't see, understand, or process and decipher letters for some reason? I really don't know, but I can, and that makes me very lucky. According to various studies, somewhere between 10 and 20% of the world cannot read...in 2016. 

 

As far as I can tell, no one at SlideBelts Inc. is in that category, and we are even luckier because of it. See, that inner-rebel happens to respond very well to positive incentives. I've realized that you can get a lot of perspective, wisdom, and enjoyment out of a good book, article or magazine. Besides that, though, we are all at a workplace that gives benefits for reading some books that happen to be really good. 

 

If you haven't yet checked out the library in the break room or on audible, appreciate the ability you have it and JUST DO IT! Seriously, you know it's worth it. 

 

Happy Thursday. Get 'er Done! 

Nery

Lessons From the Backcountry: “Carry Less. Adventure more.”

As with most of my trips, I begin with the feeling of being wildly unprepared as I hastily pack the car for the long drive to come. I have learned many lessons on my trips through the backcountry, some much harder than others, but the one that has permeated into many aspects of my life has been to PACK LIGHT. This lesson seems an obvious and simple one to follow, but for me, it was a mistake I had to carry for 70 miles through the Sierra Nevadas.
When entering a new endeavor or starting a new chapter in life, it is easy to carry fears, ideas, anxiety and many other forms of “mental cargo” that weigh us down and slow our progress. As I quickly learned within the first few miles, I was overzealous with my packing and was carrying too much. My fears of being unprepared and uncertain lead me to overload my bag.
Unfortunately, on this trip, I did not have the option of turning back and lightening my load, but luckily we can take the time to reevaluate our “mental packs” and find the heavy things that we may not need to be carrying. 
After suffering what turned out to be a 50lbs. pack for 70 miles, I have leaned out my bag from a beefy monster to what more closely resembles a daypack. And as we go through this adventure we call life, it's important to check your pack and reevaluate the things we carry because the lighter our load, whether physical or mental, the easier our adventure is. “Carry less. Adventure more.” 
Cassidy

Survival Tip #2: Estimate Remaining Daylight

Continuing with our Survival Series for National Preparedness Month, we have Survival Tip #2: Estimate Remaining Daylight.

 

What happens if you find yourself in the wilderness with no watch or phone? How can you tell how much sunlight is left to find food, set up shelter or build a fire? If you ever find yourself in such a situation, this handy Survival Hack will help.

 

To estimate the remaining daylight, locate the sun and align the top of your outstretched hand with the bottom edge of the sun. Count how many fingers it takes to meet the top of the horizon line - each of those fingers represents roughly 15 minutes of daylight remaining.

 

Always be prepared when you're hiking or camping, but in the event that you aren't, survival tips like these can make all the difference in the world.