My family is from eastern Kentucky, which is to say they were subsistence farmers and hunters and gatherers whenever the mines were shut down, which was often. My earliest memories include going hunting and fishing with my father, grandfather and uncles. Somewhere along the line I learned to make a fire, build a shelter, catch and clean fish, shoot and skin rabbits and squirrels, avoid poisonous plants and critters, find my way there and back, and generally live off the land. Later on I was in Boy Scouts, took First Aid courses, and read everything that came to hand about survival equipment, techniques, etc. I still enjoy camping and fishing, but pretty much hunt only clay pigeons these days.