Thursday 3/20/14 Preparedness topic

Hello Neothink members. I was listening to the Thursday call and I had raised my hand to comment, but unfortunately my signal on my phone cut out. Anyhow, I enjoyed the call very much. Thank you to all who shared information. I have been practicing preparedness for several years. I wanted to share a few ideas that have been key for me in my own home storage experience. First of all, I recommend that you do not wait for disaster to strike. Disaster can come in many forms. Sickness, injury, health, economy,weather,and global events. Begin today, this week, or this month. Depending on your financial circumstance and flow, large or small commitments to beginning storage are all helpful. Given substance to needs versus desires, and usage.
Second, once you know where your needs are in regards to what you need and use most. For example, look at what you spend money on regularly that taxes your budget such as water,food,and household items. Begin by taking 5$,10$,20$, and buy extra items to have on hand. You will be amazed at how quickly the items will add up in weeks, months, or years.
Third,Think about if you have unexpected financial things like sick days, injuries,job cut backs, job loss, family leaves, medical leaves,repairs, and such that arise. The items that you would normally spend a great deal of your regular income on will already be in your storage so you will not have to be without, or choose this over that. Fourth, take advantage of sale items that are easy to store.
Fifth, buy items that you use so that you can utilize the storage items.Sixth, the other thing that has been crucial for me in times of need is that I take my income tax return and pay for things I know that I would have to pay normally. In doing so I have gained savings from paying all at once versus in payments. For example, I pay my vehicle insurance in total once a year. Think about it. It seems safe to make the monthly or quarterly payments for many, but how often do those payments seem difficult to make when a repair crops up when your payment is due.It can lead to choosing between. It can lead to late fees, or cancellations and credit issues.It can lead to not having money for food, gas, medicine, and what have you. When you begin applying these principles of preparation, storage, and savings you’ll benefit in so many ways.
Many folks where mentioning water. A lot of people buy 55 gallon jugs or the new oil tanks are made of material that can be used to store water supplies.
Many bartering items were suggested as well. Salt,Pepper,Spices, Cooking Oils,Coffee,Oil lamps, and lamp oil are also very good bartering supplies. They do not cost a fortune and are easy to store. If anyone would like to talk further on storage and preparedness feel free to contact me. Thank you all for sharing ideas. Tina Levesque