[RossA]

OK, this has probably been covered somewhere else, but it's an idea of how one could go about deciding what will be needed when TSHTF.

Alarm clock wakes me up in the morning. Hmmm, do I really need an alarm clock if I have no job to go to? Maybe I do for other things. If so, I better have a battery powered clock, or better yet, one of those old time wind up clocks.

I go get my two cups of coffee. Hmmm, how important will coffee be in the bad times? Do I use my limited storage space and food budget to stockpile coffee, knowing that means less space and money for beans and rice? If space and money are no object, making coffee means using water and heat. How much of my stored water am I willing to use for coffee? How much propane, wood, etc. am I willing to commit to making coffee? Maybe this becomes a luxury item.

Breakfast? Better be thinking about what foods will provide filling, nutritious breakfasts without the need for a lot of water and heat. Remember, water that I commit to making oatmeal with is water that I won't have later for drinking. Heating supplies (see coffee above) that I commit to cooking with are gone once used.

Go to the bathroom. Yep, need TP. Some kind of TP whether it's regular rolls, Sears catalogs or whatever. Better work on that one.

Take a shower. I get the feeling that daily showers will be a luxury in the bad times. What can I do to take a partial bath? How will I rinse off even if I only wash part of my body? Got to start thinking about those things, too. Having a big supply of soap and shampoo will be good, but without a big supply of rinse water they won't help much.

Shave. Something tells me that in the bad times, beards will become more popular as shaving may become a luxury. Remember, shaving takes water, and even a little water to shave with every day starts to add up over time.

Brush teeth. Must have an extra toothbrush or two. And extra toothpaste stored up. Good dental hygiene (for that matter, overall hygiene) will be extremely important to remaining healthy and strong.


Put in contact lenses. Here's an interesting one. I can stock up on extra lenses, cleaner, drops, etc. But if the bad times last for a few years, sooner or later I'm going to run out of all of that. I guess I better have a few extra pairs of glasses around just in case. Getting emergency glasses with cheap, durable frames will help me buy more pairs than if I got the nicer frames which won't matter much in the bad times. Of course, my prescription may change over a period of a few years, but having glasses which are close to what I need will be better than having none at all.

Put on deodorant. Well, maybe I can live without that, although it won't be pleasant.

Get dressed. OK, Most of us can probably get by with the clothes we have, but it's good to consider.

Drive to work. Oh, well, that's gonna change when the TSHTF.

Just a few ideas about things to consider that we do and what we use every day. This certainly doesn't come close to covering everything, but it's maybe a good starting point to think about your own routine.

 

[NaeKid]

I don't know about the others here, but, I am a "dry-Bic'r" when it comes to shaving. I'll sit with a Bic razor (original, single-blade) and just scrape away till I am clean again.

Keeping your arm-pits shaved will also help keep the scent away. The hairs hold the scent more than the skin.

Alarm clock? I don't bother with watches or anything like that. If you really need a clock - why not go solar-powered-clock or maybe just a very traditional SunDial? A wind-up watch will last "forever" - no batteries required.

You can make your own water - see PS - Water Treatment - in specific Solar Stills .. should be more than enough to cook up your rice, oatmeal, Cream of Wheat or make soups, coffee and the like.

As for cleaning goes - I stock up on Spray Nine to clean everything. It cleans my stove with virtually no work. It cleans my bathroom till I have no problems lickin' the taps. I use it on everything - including my hands as a cleaner after working on vehicles..

As for TP - I think that even if there was a factory attached to my house, there wouldn't be enough. My woman thinks that using only a roll a day is saving paper ..

 

[Herbalpagan]

this is a useful exercise for all to do! just think about your daily routine and see what you could do differently.
Having recently gone without running water and power for almost 2 weeks, it's very true that some things go "the way of the do-do" really fast....it's cold and you conserve your energy more too. I found that I would skip a meal, skip the bath (what a waste of water lol), do my work during certain hours (when it was light out), put the effort into getting wood in, left a lot of the cleaning for when I had running water and heat. It was a good lesson!

 

[jebrown]

you may need an alrm clock. Consider the possibility of being at an early morning meeting to obtain updated conditions on the incident that has occured in your area.
There are battery powered alarm clocks. I bought one that I used during storm chasing and other out of town trips as I didn't trust the Motel people and some times I was sleeping in my van. I've had it for about 10 or 11 years and still going strong. It loses a minute or two about every three months. Do you have a cell phone most of them have an alrm clock function.
I have coffee and oatmeal both in both my three day BOB and my long term disaster supplies. Yes the caffeiene works as a diuretic but most of the water will be utilized by your body. So will the water in your oatmeal. I know there will be some people on this forum that will have an opposing view but this is what we were taught by dietitians for mass care and feeding with the Red Cross. Consider the boost from the cafeine. it doesn't take that much fuel to heat water.
Solar stills provide one to two cups of water. sometimes less.
Poke a few holes in the bottom of aone pound butter tub. Put a coffee filter in it and pour in you water this will remove the solids in the water. Next purify the water by what ever means. Boil it for one to two minutes, treat in with 1/4 teaspoon per gallon of regular household bleach or use water purifying tablets. Follow the directions on the container.
Conserve wate by using baby wipes to keep clean. you can buy a variety of portable showers on line and at camping stores along with Wal-Mart and other stores tha also include camping equjipment. A one or two gallon garden sprayer can also be used. Depending on outdoor temperatures leaving them in the sun will give you anything from barely warm to scalding body parts.
Learn how many rolls of toilet paper you use then pad that amount by 20%. You would be suprised at how much quicker daily use will multiply if one or more of you come down with diarrhea. Baby wipes can also be used here. Some tout the family cloth but you need water to wash them. With a limited supply of water it will come down to drinking water or having a clean butt. Hand sanitizer can be used as often as needed as do baby wipes to wash your hands or other body areas. Baby wipes and hand sanitizer can also substitute for deodorant if you want.
Buy a inexpensive battery powered razor and shave every few days as you see fit. If there is one or more ladies in your group they will want to shave too.
Stock up on tooth paste if you like or you can substitute salt or baking soda. I would opt for two toothbrushes for everyone in your party. Never know when one might get dropped some where you wish it hadn't.
Any thing you feel that you will need must be weighed against how much you need it to be comfortable. I don't worry about size and weight if it is something I feel is vital.
I have an extesive backgound in disater work with the Red Cross and I have done extensive Backpacking as well as storm chasing photography. I have spent alot of times on hiking trails where all you have is strictly what you need.
Pulling into store parking lots, backroad pullover spots etc. and living in my van for three to four days at a time has taught me a lot about supples needed. What actually works and what doesn't.
You should learn to use any and all equipment untill it is second nature is advised. Camping is a fun way to do this. Even if it is in yur own back yard. Just don't cheat by running into the house for something you don't have. Learn to improvise. Cook the food that you would cook in a disaster situation. This will give you some insight on what you like and don't like as well as ideas to change the way you cook or season the food.
If I can be of other help fell free to contact me.

 

[Canadian]

I think it would almost be a holiday. I wouldn't have to go to work. I'd just have to stand guard and do a little house work. Simple.