The First 72 Hours: Adding to the stores

Part 7 of a continuing series on prepping for a disaster, with an emphasis on how and where to start while on a Blue Collar budget.


Newest Additions

While talking about this series with an old friend, he mentioned some of our early hiking and camping trips into the Sierra Nevada back-country. This was when freeze-drying became popular and food items were available from most camping supply stores. He mentioned one unfortunate trip with a friend who had a very limited menu packed, lacking in bulk and fiber, with the unfortunate but predictable result: high protein, low fiber, easy to fix and cook foods may result in constipation. Add in stresses from dealing with a disaster, family injury, emergency repairs to homes or leaving in the face of an on-coming event, and a healthy gut could get ignored.

Added

• Dried Blueberries, Cherries, and raisins. One 14oz. package each for the first 2, and 30oz. for the raisins. This goes into the Disaster Stores. I make my own trail mix with almonds to take to work so I don't buy candy bars when I want something sweet in the afternoon. The local discount grocery has bulk bins for serve yourself and I get raisins from Sam's Club or Costco, whoever is the closest when I run out. Mark purchase dates on your items and rotate them into your regular pantry!
• Almonds. Raw, no salt, also from Sam's or Costco in a 3 lb bag. With less natural oil than peanuts, almonds have less chance to go rancid, and if you have had packaged trail mixes with peanuts from stores or kept some in your gear too long, you know what I mean! The fruit was mixed together (with 1/2 of the almonds and most of the raisins) and split into 10 zip lock bags and put into my freezer. This keeps it fresh longer and cools my lunch all at once. 
• Total cost for stored fruit: approximately $20.

Next to buy

• Food Grade plastic pails. I have had no luck trying to salvage restaurant reject buckets, so ordering is next. The pails will be used for storing items that do not come in hard, rigid containers like pasta, flour, beans , rice and similar items that might be contaminated by the out-gassing from plastic pails from your local Home Improvement store. Try this: next time you're in Lowe's, Home Depot, or Menard's, stick your head in the stack of pails you see everywhere and sniff. Yeah, I don't want that on my dinner plate during a trying time either.
• Sleeping bag and blankets. I need one more 3 season bag and several all wool blankets for my emergency stores. 
• Spices and other flavor enhancers. Please see the post by Evelyn Hively here for ideas on what to have and how to store your items.

Next Week

My EDC items and the Get Home Bag I currently have, plus the latest food finds as I close in on my 72 hour storage plan.

As always, if you have comments, suggestions or corrections, please post them so we all can learn. And remember, Some Is Always Better Than None!