Friday's Thoughs and Other Stuff (Thinking)

Dear Preppers and Survivalists,

Shannon's Office in disarray, after an earthquake (ca 2018)
source
Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities

Purchases
Last week, we dealt with buying things in a spiral to make sure you and your family have the basics to deal with an event.

Well, ...

I got ahead of myself because you and your family should do an inventory first.


Inventory
That's right, you should know what you have, before you go to the next step

Why?

You and your family probably already have some, if not most, of the stuff that you will need for an event/ Yes, even a collapse of these United States financial system.

So, ...


Getting Stated
Like the Threat Analysis, you start with a sheet of paper, however; you're going to need several more sheet of papers, maybe lots more.

Now, ...

You can ask your family to help, or you can do this by yourself because this is a big project.

So, ...

I suggest you ask for help from your family.

Now, I'll be honest, there are several ways you can do this. You can take those sheets of paper and label them, Air, Water, Emergency Evacuation Kit, Protection, Food, Medical, and so on.

In other words, the headings from a Wednesday Websites of the Week

Or, ...

You can label each sheet of paper by a location, such as Eldest Daughter's Bedroom, Kitchen, Garage, Youngest Son's Bedroom, and so on.

And, ...

You can use technology, like a spreadsheet and a computer, to capture the information.

Either way, ....


Working
Now, let's say you have chosen the category method; Air, Water, Food, and ...; you give everyone a sheet of paper with a category written across the top and they go out to find where everything is in the category.

Let us use Protection as an example.

You partner would walk around the house, the garage, the yard and outbuildings, then write down everything that could be used for protecting you family.

He would note kitchen knives, in the kitchen, baseball bats, in the garage, gasoline and glass bottles, in the storage shed, and handguns with ammunition, in the nightstand.

For Medical, your children might write down, ...

6 - Toothbrushes, in storage    3 - dental floss

2 - tubes of toothpaste             4 - bodywash

3 - boxes of pantie liners       10 - tampons

1 - bottle, half empty, of aspirins

But, ...

There are drawbacks to this method, especially when it comes to personal items, like clothing, so you might want to use the location method.

So, ...

You give your eldest daughter a sheet of paper, and she goes into her room and inventory everything in her room.

                  Margie's Room

3 - pairs of jeans          2 - cotton hodies
5 - T-shirts                   3 - bras
2 - blankets, cotton      1 - sets of sheets, twin size
2 - pairs of sneakers    1 - pairs of boots, fashion

And, ... So on.

Needless to say, an older child may need to help a younger child, to complete this task.


Almost
Once you and your family are finished with this inventory, you and your partner, and maybe even your older children, go through the list and make a master list, so your family understands what you really own.


Next, ...