Being Prepared.

I have felt very strongly the past year about getting prepared for an emergency and since disasters of the natural and economic kind are always happening worldwide (even though we have had a few major incidences lately I say always instead of recently because in my adult lifetime it doesn't take much thought to go back the past 10 years and recount numerous tragedies, not to mention those we know of from history), and because I now have kids to take care of it seems more important than it has in the past. Not to mention we now have a garage and a pantry so I have the space to stock up. Not that I didn't love having canned goods stashed under our couch.

Although it's still a work in progress it really is comforting to know that we might have some of the basics on hand to make survival during a trial less trying. Here are some of the things that are part of our emergency plan (and I am open to more or better ideas).


- Water. This is probably the most important but most difficult to store element of survival. Even though we have the space now the last thing I wanted in my yard or garage is one of the giant blue polyethylene barrels that to me just seem like they would be the perfect breeding ground for algae etc. Plus I don't think it would be very easy to transport if we had to leave quickly. So I keep a few cases of bottled water on hand but they seem to get used plus I'm not sure if the plastic bottles are the best for long-term storage. So my favorite option for water storage are the Mylar storage bags and boxes (shown in above pictures) from Emergency Essentials. Each bag stores 5 gallons and has a handy spout for dispensing. Easy to move, easy to store. And one reviewer said that they tested the water after a few years and it was still fresh. But if you don't have water on hand there is always the toilet tank! ;)


- Food. I am not one to store wheat, or any other grain that I have no idea what to do with, nor possess the tools to grind it. I could probably learn these skills but when there are so many other convenient items to store I am not inclined to any time soon. Number one on my list of foods I want to have in a time of trouble - chocolate. So I try to stock up on chocolate chips. (I figure they might be good for bartering purposes as well). Keeping the inventory up is a problem however.


Mostly I try to store stuff we actually eat. One, because I know what to do with it. Two, it gets rotated frequently (and I don't run out of the important stuff and have to go to the store as often). This consists of peanut butter, cereal (oats and cold cereal), honey and jam, a variety of canned vegetables and beans, pasta and sauce, canned and boxed soups, ketchup and salsas, coconut milk, rice, canned fish and meats and some of those meal in a box type things (Homestyle Bakes etc.). I usually concentrate on one or two items per shopping trip and it's usually those items that are on sale.


I hope to eventually add some more camping style freeze-dried pouches, MRE's, high calorie survival bars and bulk items to our storage. First on my list is powdered milk (any brand suggestions?) and one thing I am very curious about - canned bacon. Apparently this Yoder's bacon is supposed to be delicious.

Costco actually has a great selection of emergency kits online for reasonable prices and no addtl. shipping costs (they even sell wheat and rice in bulk). We have an emergency 72 hour kit and a 99 meal kit from there - both in convenient, easy to transport buckets.

I also store vitamins. And some seeds in case we need to plant a victory garden.

- Toiletries/Cleaning Supplies. It takes me over a year to go through a bottle of shampoo (shower much?) so I don't tend to over-stock on beauty items but paper towels, toilet paper, (soon diapers and wipes), foil, trash bags etc. are on the list. I also stock up on laundry detergent, bleach, dish soap and other basic cleaning supplies.

- First Aid. This part of preparation isn't so interesting to me put we do have some medical odds and ends, not to mention a surgeon on call, in the house. Of course I have some homeopathic voodoo (herbs, colloidal silver, vinegar and what not) just in case.

- Batteries/Light/Fuel/Matches. This is a hard one to keep on hand, plus it can get expensive. We have an assortment of batteries - rechargeable and otherwise. We have some propane. I would love to have a whole house generator.

Flashlights are also difficult to keep around - our kids love to take them from their proper places and subsequently leave them on until their batteries are exhausted. Same thing with lanterns, headlamps etc.


Also, I try to keep my car's gas tank as full as possible at all times. Usually when it gets to half I refill. I just feel like this is important. It doesn't cost anymore, it just means more frequent stops at the gas station.

- Cash. Not a ton but some on hand in case ATM's are out of commission. And in small bills - I don't think proprietors are going to making much change in a major catastrophe.


- Misc. - Blankets, Ponchos, Sleeping Bags, and other camping type supplies. (If you have kids you might want small toys, games and books in a easy to grab backpack).

Crank radios, flares, gas-masks, rescue ladders? The possibilities to increase your comfort level are endless - and personal - what things would you not want to be without?


- Weapons. We don't have a huge cache or anything (and what we have is safely stored) but if you're going to have a stock of supplies you've got to be able to protect it. Not to mention some squirrel meat might taste real good in the right circumstance. Add ammunition to this category. (And wasp spray - I keep getting an email forward about how it sprays 20 feet and can protect you from an intruder and it doesn't sound like a half bad idea.)

A few months ago I had the chance to talk about emergency preparation with my neighbor, I'm not sure how the topic came up but she started working on her emergency preparedness too and I'm so glad. Mostly, because I don't want to have to share our stockpile - (nor do I want others to suffer). I certainly don't want to have to use wasp spray on her, but I might be interested in seeing what she might trade for a bag of chocolate chips...

Being prepared isn't just for boy scouts. So neighbors, family, friends - especially those in earthquake heavy parts of the country - have a plan (so I don't have to worry about you if something bad happens). And if anyone has any advice on this subject I'd love to hear it.

[Note - One thing that also used to prevent me from stocking up was the cost associated with buying more than we might need at a time but I realized that money in the bank may not be so easy to turn into food, water and supplies in an emergency - and certainly won't be cheap to get. So it's now a part of our "savings and investment" plan. What has your 401K done for you lately? ]