I don't think I'm a good prepper

[matt819]

I’ve been stocking up on odds and ends in the past month or so so we’re ready in the event of shortages. I now have 35 rolls of toilet paper, about 18 rolls of paper towels, Pasta, sauce, salsa, and a hodgepodge of canned items. So, I’m at the grocery store and my wife texts me and says we only have two cans of navy beans and two cans of kidney beans. We never eat navy beans and we only use kidney beans when I make chili, maybe once a year. But what do I do? I load my cart with navy beans, kidney beans, and pinto beans. I don’t even know what navy beans are.

We have a 45 gallon water container, which we used to bring to horse shows when the kids were kids. The kids are now adults, and I still have this 45 gallon container. Filled, it would be 337 pounds. So my wife says let’s fill it and bring it to the basement. Well, 337 pounds might as well be 1000 pounds because I can’t move that to the basement, and I have no way of filling it from the basement. My guess is that the water container will remain outside for the winter, unfilled.

I am in a state of paralysis trying to figure out what might go into a first aid kit, because every house ought to have a pretty decent first aid kit, right? So, Band-Aids? Sure, but which kind, and how many? Bandages? Same questions. Etc. Etc. I suspect that even if we were to fill it with everything imaginable, in the event of an accident, I would still be yelling, where is the fucking first aid kit. And of course once it was found, I would discover that the one item I need is not in there.

Bottom line. In the event of the zombie apocalypse, I’m a goner.

[underpants]

1. Your doing pretty good.

First aid is pretty simple - bandages and tape you really don’t need gauze. Oh lots of the peroxide too.
If you are getting a ready made first aid kit go big.

[jmowreader]

18. No peroxide. Betadine.

True story:

When I was working Hurricane Andrew relief, one of my unit's platoon sergeants got in the way of some metal cutting and got a little hunk of red-hot rebar dropped on her forearm. She went to the medics, and they issued her a bottle of H2O2 to "fight off the infection."

It didn't work. She was getting more and more infected and wound up on antibiotics, which didn't work.

We went on R&R once a week. At my next one, I went to a drugstore and bought her a bottle of Betadine. Two days later, the infection was gone.

[wishstar]

20. Povidine-Iodine (Betadine) is the best treatment for wounds and infections for me and spouse

At Walmart their generic product is called Equate "First Aid Antiseptic" rather than brand name Betadine and works equally well

We never had side effects (I am allergic to neosporin and find other things irritating to skin) from povidine iodine and virtually instant relief from pain and irritation and swelling along with removal of infection when using povidine iodine.

[underpants]

21. Thanks.

[DonaldsRump]

2. Funny...and timely

There is a food drive going on near here, and I realized how much I stockpiled since March.

There are many people that need it far more than we do, so my daughter and I are taking about half of our excess rations to the food drive this evening. While putting the cans and other stuff in the bags, I realized how sad it is that so many people are being forced to go to food banks just to live.

[dweller]

3. You got a garden hose ?

Put the barrel in the basement and fill it with the hose ..


✌🏻

[spudspud]

5. Agreed. And there are water filter attachments

that are not very expensive you can use on the hose if you're worried about the quality of the water for drinking purposes.

[matt819]

6. Garden hoses a big issue

We have horses. It’s the reason we have no money. The hose freezes. So over the past few days I’ve had to fill up 4-gallon containers and carry them out to the horses. The things we do for love, hey? I just bought a heated hose, but I haven’t set it up yet. That actually might be a solution if I can open the windows to the basement. I’m embarrassed that I didn’t think of that myself. Which is why I am not a good prepper and will be in the first wave of those who die during the zombie apocalypse.

Speaking of zombie apocalypse, or Apocalypse is in general, this year I’ve read the stand Stephen King, the end of October by Lawrence right, five of the books in the Nark Tufo series about the zombie apocalypse, and another one that is escaping my memory right now. So I was already expecting not to make it through the first wave, but these prepper experiences pretty much confirm it.

[flotsam]

19. Any RV store, campground, or online retailer will sell you potable water hoses

Also you can buy lengths of thermostatic heat tapes to keep the hose from freezing. You would need to start the heat tape with a wrap or two around your outside spigot since those also are prone to freezing.

[PJMcK]

4. You're doing fine

We had a very bad feeling in late February and we retreated out of NYC to our house in the Catskill Mountains. The week before the shutdowns started, we went shopping and stocked up on all of the things you mentioned and more. We probably could have stayed in the house for 3 or 4 months without having to go out. I've joked that we were a big part of the toilet paper shortage!

May I suggest a few other things to consider in no specific order?

First aid products are a must. You might not be able to get to an ER so be sure you know some basics.
Get lots of cleaning products.
Condensed milk lasts at least 6 months; it tastes terrible by itself but works in recipes and coffee.
Buy coffee and filters. Or tea.
I put a pallet of bottled water in the basement (96 bottles, I think) but we have well water so we're not too worried about that.
Several 5-gallon gas cans for cars, generators, etc.
Ice melt, if appropriate.

You get the idea. Think of the worst thing that could happen and plan for it. My wife told me this is the Umbrella Strategy: If you carry an umbrella, it won't rain and vice-versa.

Good luck!

[Chainfire]

7. You don't have to be a goner.

You could join all of the right-wing preppers in "The Mountains." They have plans to live a Neanderthal lifestyle of freedom of norms and laws, and without and damn Socialists. Just scrape the Obama sticker off your car first and try to act dumb.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

8. Can the container be moved when it's empty?

22 trips downstairs, carrying two gallons of water on each trip, the container will be filled.

Of course, this probably means there are 22 trips UPstairs too. But, the gallon jugs will be empty for those trips. Great aerobic exercise, you'll be fit enough to tackle zombies.

[Kali]

10. you beat me to it

[LiberalLoner]

11. Good idea!

[matt819]

13. I hate you

Just saying.

[Kali]

9. buy a couple of single gallon jugs of water

every time you go to the basement dump 1 or2 gallons in your storage (depending on the errand and what else you need to carry), eventually you will fill it up and you get the benefit of weighted stair descents - might be good for leg muscles or something

keep plain, unscented, unthickened bleach around. it is good for cleaning and you can even use it to sterilize drinking water if you can't boil it or filter in some other way. don't inject it though. that isn't good.

[ret5hd]

12. I don't know where you live, but...

we live in tornado alley. We “prep” as if our area was going to be devastated by a tornado.

Water-we have approx 60 liters at all times

Food- flour, corn meal, oatmeal, grits, cream of wheat, salt, sugar, yeast, peanut butter, lots of canned goods, evaporated milk, dried beans, cheese, crackers, and then I have my “personal” stash of beef jerky type stuff and Spam and tins of sardines (don’t you DARE judge me!!!)

First Aid-ibuprofen, aspirin, hydrogen peroxide, bandages, ace bandages, antiseptic ointment, gauze bandages, leukotape, hydrocortisone cream, etc.

And a blanket for each person. And a large heavy duty trash bag for each person (can be a poncho or shelter)

Of course, add a couple weeks worth of any prescription meds to that first aid kit.

Plus, you know that pair of glasses that you put in a drawer somewhere when you got your new pair? Put those in the first aid also.

That should get you started.

[matt819]

14. Thanks

I’m in northern New England. No tornados. Just snow storms, which I’ll take any day over tornados and hurricanes.

Mainly I’m thinking of shortages and maybe power loss. Our last major extended power loss was more than 10 years ago. So the odds are that we’ll be fine. It’s just that your kind wanders when you start stocking up and thinking about the choices.

[ret5hd]

15. Just buy an extra or two of every "storable" food...

like tuna or canned tomatoes...whatever it is that YOU eat (not what someone else's list tells you to store), rotate it thru as you use stuff...and after a few weeks or months of accumulation of what YOU use...man, you are officially a "prepper"! And you didn't even have to grow a neck beard or buy an AR-15 or gain an extra 60 pounds or wear camo! You be like, I dunno, the "secret prepper".

[procon]

16. Get an instant pot and stock up on all kinds of

dried beans, peas and lentils. You can serve up a pot of split pea soup, lentils or black eyed peas in about 15 minutes.

The dried legumes will keep next to forever, require less storage space than canned and a little goes a long way to feed your family good quality proteins that don't rely on meat. The key to good disaster meal planning is proteins.

The instant pot is great for quickly cooking pasta, grains and rice. Grits, oatmeal, steel cut oats, polenta, so it should be in use everyday.

[liberalla]

17. Don't forget rice! Rice and beans are yummy and satisfying. I bought extra salt...

Plus cayenne, garlic powder, cumin, etc. Dried beans, grains, lentils, will go a long way, but if I don't have seasoning... yuch! Also need to have coffee and teas on hand.

Pet foods (if applicable)

Batteries!