This project will track the creation of the ideal BugOutBag for the average cautious (but not nutty) person who understands both risk and the relatively low cost of being prepared for it. It will technically cover not just the bag itself, but basically everything that you should have prepared as part of this effort, including things like water, food, etc.
I'm going for some level of basic preparedness without getting obsessive. The goal of my project is to be able to survive a temporary flare up of unrest as may be caused by one or more terrorist attacks, natural disasters, etc. I'm drawing that line at two weeks of survival right now, i.e. I have enough food and water to hang back off the grid until things get back to normal. Nothing ridiculous.
I am not preparing for a major catastrophe, as 1) it's too depressing to think about, and 2) it's not really possible to be prepared for that. I think the best thing to do is to go to a safe place where food and water can be procured over long periods of time when the smaller issue happens. Then, if it turns into a major issue you have the ability to wait it out. But if things go completely sideways, and you can't even get to your safe spot, well, then it's just bad news and there's not much use in preparing for that level of drama.
As such, I'm going for two weeks of isolated comfort. Food, water, weapons, a radio, flashlights, blankets, shelter, etc. Nothing major--just enough to where I'd be stupid not to have it, but not enough to last through a Siberian meteor strike.
The idea here is to share with others so that they may be prepared as well, and to enjoy the process of optimizing what the bag contains. That will include conversation on the justification for having more or fewer supplies on hand given likely threat scenarios, etc.
I, for example, would likely have 1-2 months of this available if I lived somewhere rural and had more storage. But being in a 1-bedroom apartment in San Francisco, two weeks will have to do me for now.
Feel free to comment on this by forking and going another route, or by emailing me at [email protected].