Although many of the items in the large Personal Survival Kit can be used to attract attention, these are the ones that I would probably reach for first.

The whistle is a loud Perry brand British lifeboat whistle. It's attached with a mini-carabiner to the compass, to make it easier to keep them together and so I can clip it to my clothing. Three short blasts is the internationally-accepted distress signal. It's not the loudest whistle on the market, but it is one of the loudest for its compact size. I prefer a plastic, pea-less whistle for two reasons: it won't stick to your lips like a metal one might when it's really, really cold, and you can still make noise even when the whistle's wet, an important consideration. And, you can blow a whistle a lot longer than you can yell for help.

The mirror is metallized plastic, lightweight, and with a hole for hanging it on a tree limb but not one in the center for sighting on a plane or potential rescuers. I may remedy that someday. I put a layer of clear packing tape over the clear side of the mirror to protect it from scratches, and folded over a 'tab' of tape so it can be quickly removed. On the back of the mirror I applied a layer of metallic duct tape, both to protect the metallized finish of the mirror and to provide another (less effective) reflective surface. There are also directions on how to sight the mirror on a plane or other object, something that is good to practice before you actually need that skill (just don't practice blinding an actual plane!).

An alternate and less effective substitute for the mirror is the aluminum foil, which can be used as a moderately-effective sunlight reflector and a decent radar reflector if you're at sea.

The 'Send Help' signal panel can be used if you become stranded in your car. That half of the fluorescent paper is laminated with clear 2-inch wide packing tape, to protect the 'Send Help' message and the list of kit contents on the back. The unlaminated part of the paper can be used for messages to rescuers, notes, a diary, etc. Remember, if you live through your harrowing survival situation, book, movie and made-for-TV deals are sure to follow.

I have at least three ways to attract attention at night:

• Mini butane lighter, either the flame or just flicking the flint wheel rapidly;

• The flint/magnesium sparking stick. Running a file or knife blade along the flint side makes a shower of sparks that can produce a strobe-like effect if done rapidly at night while held over your head;

• And of course, the LED flashlight.