Why are you stocking some items?

[Quail_Antwerp]

condoms

A quick trip to the urologist by hubby and you don't have to worry about those. Snip snip!

HAHA leave it to you to pick that out of the list! yea, tried to talk him about that - he's still thinking

 

[hoosier]

TP is a comfort item for DH, toothpaste and toothbrushes are mine.
We stock some items we could/would use, but have mainly for barter.

 

[Wifezilla]

Just a note for all the fellas out there...a vasectomy DOES NOT impair function. Just sayin'

 

[freemotion]

Tattler lids are my next stock-up item. I only have something like 168, is that the bulk order I got? And a few extra of the rubber rings in case they accidentally get tossed, lost, or broken. I figure I need about three times that amount to be truly ready for anything, including a bumper garden crop and a couple of large hogs!

Valmom, glass jars will keep mice and bugs out, especially the ones with metal lids. Restaurants used to get stuff in them, but mostly it is plastic now. Determined mice/rats will chew through a five gallon pail or a heavy plastic garbage can. You can use a galvanized garbage can to store stuff in plastic to mouse proof it. Just put it where the temps won't fluctuate too much, creating condensation, like near a garage window that gets mid-afternoon sun and then cool night temps. Put it in the darkest corner of the garage. You can also get the glass-top quart canning jars for free if you put the word out, then buy up lots of the rubber rings and store them in an airtight container, not in the original box, or they dry out and crack. These are great for dry goods. I keep grains and beans in them once I open the big bag or bucket. That way I can rotate a couple into my kitchen and not have to deal with a five gallon pail every time I want to grind a bit of flour.

You know you are well-prepared when a big storm is coming and you secretly hope the power will go out and the roads will be closed for three weeks.

 

[ORChick]

Huge oversimplification here ... but I see the difference as that between the *self sufficient" and the *prepper*. I know that there is a great overlap, but still ... I have visited some other forums (fora :/?), and read posts from people who have all sorts of *preps*, many of which they have no intention of using until *TSHTF*, and seem to have little idea of how to use, even then. Or have large amounts of canned and packaged food stuffs that (IMO) most of us here wouldn't actually consider to be real food ... either because that is the way they eat now, or because some *survival guru* says that that is what is needed. Personally, I have a large pantry for several reasons, *TSHTF* isn't first on the list. I stock up because I don't like shopping much, and actively hate shopping for only one or two items that I run out of. I stock up because I like to cook different kinds of foods, and live in a small-ish rural city with very few ethnic or out of the ordinary shopping sources. I stock up because, to be quite honest, I am cheap, and prefer to get what I get when it is on sale. And I stock up because it has happened a few times that one of us is sick, or the driveway is snowed in for a few days, and shopping is, at best, difficult. My stocked pantry gives me a sense of security that, frankly, has very little to do with The End of the World.
Addendum: I consider my library to also be a part of my supplies - firstly for the knowledge it has ready to remind me of when I need it, and secondly because if I have nothing to read then, in a very real sense for me, the world will have come to an end, or at least changed to a very uncomfortable one

 

[freemotion]

Going poo-less was pretty easy, I did that months ago.

Just add more fiber into your diet. Carrots are good for this.

 

[Bettacreek]

Personally, I'm not necessarily "stocking up" for any particular reason. I like the fact that I can buy 50lb bags of raw sugar at $35 and after a year, I'm paying an eight the price per pound that others are paying for (inflation). It saves a LOT of money to store foods and buy in bulk (goes together generally). It also makes me feel more comfortable when I don't have to run to the grocery store every week. "Hey we ran out of ___" "Ok, go grab some more in the ________ downstairs" is so much better than having to make a list each week and go without until you hit the store or whatever. The only real disasters I'm thinking of are prices basically or small disasters (snow storms, etc)

 

[valmom]

ORChick- good distinction! I don't consider myself a "prepper" but an SS'er- I want to be able to do things myself that I reasonably can, just for the sense of independance it gives, even if I never have to use it. I'm not actually thinking I ever will have to use the knowledge I have (I hope!) but I still want to know how to do it.

I am going to have to be on the lookout for more big mason jars- especially now that I am starting dehydrating stuff!

 

[sunsaver]

Huge oversimplification here ... but I see the difference as that between the *self sufficient" and the *prepper*. I know that there is a great overlap, but still ... I have visited some other forums (fora :/?), and read posts from people who have all sorts of *preps*, many of which they have no intention of using until *TSHTF*, and seem to have little idea of how to use, even then. Or have large amounts of canned and packaged food stuffs that (IMO) most of us here wouldn't actually consider to be real food ... either because that is the way they eat now, or because some *survival guru* says that that is what is needed. Personally, I have a large pantry for several reasons, *TSHTF* isn't first on the list. I stock up because I don't like shopping much, and actively hate shopping for only one or two items that I run out of. I stock up because I like to cook different kinds of foods, and live in a small-ish rural city with very few ethnic or out of the ordinary shopping sources. I stock up because, to be quite honest, I am cheap, and prefer to get what I get when it is on sale. And I stock up because it has happened a few times that one of us is sick, or the driveway is snowed in for a few days, and shopping is, at best, difficult. My stocked pantry gives me a sense of security that, frankly, has very little to do with The End of the World.
Addendum: I consider my library to also be a part of my supplies - firstly for the knowledge it has ready to remind me of when I need it, and secondly because if I have nothing to read then, in a very real sense for me, the world will have come to an end, or at least changed to a very uncomfortable one

I don't even need to post here because ORChick has expressed my exact thoughts about my own pantry

 

[hiker]

This is a very interesting thread. I guess that I am interested in being SS, because I feel that someday in the not so distant future, things are gonna change A LOT. If I had to make a distinction between prepper and ss, I would come down on the side of being a prepper. My dream in life is to move to a remote place and become SS. However, the poo may hit the fan before I get there, hence the stocking up.

I stock both prepared items as well as the ingredients to make more. I feel that I can always use the shampoo or barter it if I need to.

One thing that my family will do is "drills" where we don't use any electricity or water for a weekend. This gives us an idea of how we are doing mentally and physically if we have to do without and provides us good opportunity to use our food that we have stashed back.

I have stocked both the basics-rice, beans, wheat ect, as well as some of our normal foods-granola bars or animal crackers. Food fatigue can be a real issue and if you are already stressed sometimes a favorite treat can help. For me TP clearly fits into this catagory. True you can't eat it, but it is relatively cheap, doesn't spoil and I have the room. If some paper squares will help keep me smiling and calm, so be it. Although, come to think of it, I will certainly need more chocolate.