52 weeks of prep supplies

   

      The New Year is upon us and we are still prepping to live.  Money is tight and there is no cure for that except careful planning and waste cutting.  I sound like a politician!  I couldn't really be one as I actually plan and spend carefully!  I have put a number on what I have to devote to prep supplies this year.  

      This number is in addition to maintaining what I have and replacing anything that needs rotating out due to use by dates.  I have bills and I need tires for the car, like anyone else   I have set $15 a week as a goal to spend on prepping supplies.  Also, there is to be a big purchase savings of $20 a week.  The $20 is to be saved until needed and spent on a big ticket item like vehicle repair or a replacement.  When you do the math, the housekeeper who has nothing but foresight will have $1040 to spend on the big ticket item and I will have $780 to spend on weekly items to store.  Unlike the big ticket item money, the $15 a week will be spent weekly.

      I have a friend who complains she has no money for prepping and after the talk about cutting the coffee and soda, even she has more money to devote to supplies than the people we work for.  I have employers who have every convenience and their children have every conceivable electronic pod, or pad available who have no money to devote to preparing for the next storm or disaster.  They shop at the nearest grocer, not the best or the least expensive, it is all convenience and name brands, all the time.  I will have $780 to spend a bit at a time.

save-a-lot.com/

       I know how to squeeze the life out of a dollar and today I spent my first 'extra' $15.  I went to Save-A-Lot, a discount grocery store, and bought three one pound canned hams ($2.99 each dated 2015), 2 pounds of beans (.99 each), two pounds of salt (.50 each), and a gallon of vinegar ($2.29). The change went into a special change can that will be cashed in when it is full and spent on more supplies at the end of the year.

       In 52 weeks I will have a year's supply of stored food.  I will buy flats of canned vegetables and fruits, boxes of pancake mix that I will vacuum seal, dehydrated milk, dehydrated soup and pasta mixes, canned meats, spices and canning and preserving pectin, vinegar and salt, medical and first aid supplies, gadgets that get the job done, tanks of propane, tools and buckets to store it all in.  

      Each year I have an opportunity to do a side job that will this year be dedicated to gapping more of the supply holes.  This year all this 'spare cash' will be devoted to supplies I don't have yet, or acquiring a skill I need.  I have a wish list.  I am going to replace the leather belt on my treadle sewing machine.  I need a dedicated storage unit away from home closer to the safe house, among other things.  The list is long and each small item crossed off will give me great satisfaction.

     You can give up a cup of coffee with extra shots of flavor, or stop shopping at the easiest store and really shop bargains.  There is money every where and some of it is waiting to be freed up for prep supplies, tools, and skill building.
   
     In 52 weeks what will you have in your Prep closet?