Raggedy Ann and Andy -- Old clothes, new purpose.

All of us wear clothes...I hope. I haven't seen any people out there without clothes and I hope that doesn't become a trend. Anyone who wears clothes also knows that those clothes wear out over time. It doesn't matter what it is, those clothes are made of short, individual fibers of material which are strung together  into thread which is then woven into fabric and then cut and sewn into clothes. Anyone who has had a favorite towel, or bathrobe or socks know that occasionally they wear so long they go threadbare. I mean, the lint in the dryer doesn't appear out of nowhere. That is the loose fibers sloughing off of our clothes bit by bit until they are closer to window screens than clothing anymore.
Sometimes, the clothes are just fine but they have shrunk or we have grown (*ahem*) and there is nothing wrong with them. Most places have good secondhand stores such as Goodwill, Deseret Industries, St. Vincent DePaul, all places I have been. If you can donate them there. If not or if the clothes are less than usable, keep reading.
One of the key things to build up your emergency supply arsenal is in repurposing items from everyday life. Whoever has a garage and doesn't have a few washed out, tin cans for holding miscellaneous little stuff. Who doesn't have a pair of demoted tennis shoes for gardening? And how many people even remotely related to Boy Scouts haven't made a firestarter out of wax, wood shavings and a paper fiber egg carton. Clothes fall into the same realm.
Look at the clothes you wear. Some are spandex,wool,rayon, polyester, nylon, and cotton. Cotton and wool are natural fibers and both are designed to wick moisture away from the body.it is that absorbent feature that makes them so valuable. If you have old clothes that are no longer usable due to stains, rips, holes, etc. something you don't believe will be used at a thrift store, Keep them for rags. They are great in the garage and for scrubbing down things that, you really don't want to use your designer washcloths on. Here are a few tips:
DO try to pack like items together. keep jeans together, socks, together, and shirts together. If you want to demote some old towels or washcloths same thing. Bedsheets, curtains, anything made out of natural fiber is great for this purpose.
DO package them in good plastic bags and boxes. Mice and other vermin will nest in them if they know they are there. When vermin comes in for the winter they are looking for food and shelter including nesting material so bag it up and box the bags. DON'T cut them down.Leave sheets as sheets, pants as pants, and shirts as shirts. mark the bags and boxes as "clothes for rags" or "Pants for rags." or Shirts for rags" The reason behind this is say the world blows up and you eventually find yourself either out of clothes to wear or aren't warm enough, fashion won't matter. You would also be surprised what you could get in barter for a pair of pants with a stain on it. And of all of this,a pair of pants is probably more valuable to you or a barter customer as pants then as rags. It comes down to the point that if you keep them as pants, shirts,sheets, etc, then you have shorts or rags, pants or rags, blankets or rags, etc. if you turn them into rags beforehand, you have taken away the choice. Lastly, and somewhat unrelated but related, (like that!) Save shoes too. Ask any pioneer, (if you could) would they rather complete their trek across the plains with a worn pair of tennis shoes or bare feet. I think you could guess their answer. Shoes and clothes as barter items also mean there is no such thing as too much. I would rather than twenty boxes of them in my garage then two. Imagine what holes could be filled in my needs if I could barter them rather than having barely enough to tide me over for a while. Rags and/ or clothes to a person in need in an emergency, could make all the difference. 

Water, water, everywhere and not a drop to drink.

How often does water come up in your thoughts of emergency preparedness? I know many of us who have made some efforts to prepare for emergencies have done some with water but have we done enough?
First, when disasters happen, immediate access to clean water from the usual sources could be cut off. Secondary sources such as irrigation ditches, puddles,lakes, streams etc could give water, just not potable water. These sources could be made potable, but it takes time and water is something we can only go a few days without.
First, the most common recommendation is to have at least one gallon of water per person, per day available for at least two weeks. For me and my family often people, that means ten gallons per day for up to 14 days. 140 gallons can take up a lot of room. Second we live in a desert, Utah being the second driest state in the nation. I also live in a big metro area so a lot of people will need water. That has induced me to save more potable ready to go water for my family. I have more than the minimum and I am glad of it.
What next? What if the emergency last longer than two weeks? Some people live in rather remote areas and it could take time before water is restored to these more distant localities. There are a few different methods for treating water. Filtration, Boiling, or chemical.
Filtration of water is a good method but it is only as good as the filters and containers being used. I have often imagined some people dumping a bucket of water into a filtration system and then using that same bucket to capture the filtered water! That may have helped with sediments, but not with bacteria, or other chemical wastes that could be in the water. I have also wondered how long it has been since some filters are changed. Understand, filters do get used up and the dirtier the water is when it goes in, the faster the filter gets used. Screen the water for bigger stuff then run it through several layers of clean cloth as a prefilter. That should get rid of a lot of the mud and other sediments. Then, run the water through the regular filter. That will extend the life of your filter and ensure you have clean water longer.
If your filter is not designed to handle biological or chemical contaminants, invest in a good one that does. Get to know your filter. If you have an under sink filter that uses cartridges for the filters, get a spare set. Sure they can be spendy but you may be very glad you have it.
Chemical treatment can be done with a variety of chemicals but understand, they only get rid of bacteria, viruses, and other biological nasties in the water. It does not "kill" the dirt. Bleach, iodine, and water purification tablets are the most common methods. Depending on the issues with the water you are using, you may need to use more or less. If the water is relatively clean usually a few drops of bleach will be enough to sanitize it. Put it in before you store it and then before using it, open the lid and let some of the bleach smell breathe off before use. For tablets, follow the directions on the package.
Boiling is a common method but uses fuel to get it to boil so I would hesitate at it unless the other methods are not available. Boil the water for a few minutes at least and keep it clean and safe from contamination. A home water distiller uses this method and is the safest of the boiling methods when used correctly.
All of these methods will certainly make non-potable water you have better than it was but no method is perfect. Even water pumped to you house now isn't perfect. Protecting your source is vital too so don;t bathe in the stream or wash your dishes in the lake. keep the water source pristine and carry water uphill and out of the way for use for any need, bathing, drinking,cooking or cleaning -- DON'T do any of it in your water source. When waste water is dumped. dump it into a pit,dug for the purpose so the water can go through the natural filter in the ground and not contaminate the rest of the system.
As the title of the blog implies, this is intended for someone without much money. It is true that some suggestions given here cost money. However, with some creativity and savings, clean water as an element of ones emergency preparedness, is worth saving up for and investing time in. 

Do you carry an adhesive bandage with you?

As a parent of eight children, most of which are still in the daredevil stage of "they will climb up onto everything and jump down into everything" how often do you find yourself needing a simple sterile adhesive bandage? I know my kids and looking at them, you will find some scrape, cut, bruise, or other little sign of childhood somewhere on their, knees, face, elbows, arms or wherever they got dinged. I have bought band-aids by the 100 count box for a couple of years now and we never have them long enough to expire. Kids need them...often.
However, from time to time, I need one. I get paper cuts or just walking around I bump into things, and occasionally I bleed. It would be nice if that never happened but I am not walking around in a canvas full body bubble suit  to prevent every thing. And usually it is just a little thing.
Some time ago, I started carrying a couple of band-aids in my wallet. They are small enough to fit in there and as there is only two it doesn't take up much room. I swap them out for fresh ones if I don't end up needing them. I have even recently thought about keeping an alcohol wipe in it too as often the things I do that cause me damage, are not ones that find my skin to be very clean.