Option 2--I have a loaded pistol with 11 rounds of ammo, 2 backup food supplies (both cans of beans), water purification tablets, and at clover two rounds ago, so don't need to eat again until the end of Day Five.

Oh, thank goodness I was able to lift that can of beans away from Tom's RV and get away safely. I knew approaching from the back and not being greedy were good ideas. I'm just thankful I was able to get more food for my people, and lead them away with their lives. As we moved deeper into the woods, it sounded like other groups coming up behind us weren't so lucky.

You're really taking a chance on trusting strangers in these strange times. We got lucky with a calculated risk regarding the guy in the tree. It's not an option I'll be making again soon, and if and when I do, it certainly won't be made lightly.

That is why I am determined we avoid the shooting, shouting group we hear behind us. Nothing good can be coming of a group that is shooting and shouting. Either they are trying to get away from someone/something, or are chasing someone/something for nefarious purposes. We don't want to get involved or in their way in either instance.

Going through the barbed wire fence isn't really an option. It's obviously there to keep something in (or possibly out), and we don't want to go in there and potentially meet up with some dangerous animal or herd of them. We also don't want to risk getting shot for being on someone's private property. There is also the danger of one or more of us getting injured by the wire (in a time when we have no first aid supplies), or getting stuck on it (and left at the mercy of whatever is coming toward us in the woods).

We're also not going to try to hide and shoot at whatever is coming, because we don't know if they are friend or foe, and wouldn't want to shoot friendly people or those in need, and also because we only have one gun and 11 rounds of ammo, and we have no idea just how armed these other people are. We could be way outgunned. It's not a risk I'm willing to take, aside from the moral issue of it.

That just leaves two options. Go right along the fence, or go left along the fence.

We don't know what is in either direction, so it really is a coin toss. Either direction could lead us to disaster or salvation (or at least one or more useful items to use as supplies).

After some deliberation, we decide to go left. It is the natural inclination of most Americans to turn right, based on the driving laws and unspoken walking rules in crowds. Always keep to the right. So, the violent-sounding group behind us will likely turn right, too, if they get this far. It isn't guaranteed, but it is the most likely action they will take if they get as far as the fence.

We need to make sure we take every opportunity to avoid them.

Therefore, turning left makes the most sense. It is against the natural instincts of most people. While we don't know what is to the left, we don't know what is to the right, either. At least by going left, there is a lesser chance of us being followed. And, in these weird times, that is about as close to a guarantee of safety as we can get (there is no real guarantee of safety in these times, but we take the one with the highest odds we can get).

Hoping we made the right choice, based on our knowledge of human psychology and our desire to avoid unnecessary risk, we turn left and march on into the woods.