Emergency Kits and Possibles Bags

A few weeks ago, I asked, "what is a possibles bag, and should you make one?" Well, I made one, or at least the start of one.

This is an older Kodak camera pouch, vinyl leatherette lined with felt. It's "vintage," I suppose, and measures about 6"x4"x1" (15cm/10cm/2.5cm). I suspect it once had a strap of some kind, but at present, there is only a belt clip on the back.

I already have a first aid kit in my car. It is a satchel with two inner compartments lined with elastic straps and pockets, and there is also MOLLE/PALS webbing to attach extra pouches to the front. Right now, I have a single pouch with an emergency bandage, and since it uses only about half of the space, I'm thinking about adding another pouch with a few other useful items. This is a trial run to see what I may want to add.

Since this will supplement a full first aid kit, I omitted the Altoids tin mini-kit. I'll also be choosing some basic tools as a dedicated car kit for minor repairs, so no screwdriver or pliers, either. However, I think a Swiss Army knife and lighter still matter. A notepad is also useful. I should add a basic ballpoint pen for notes, but the Sharpie is staying as well. The cheap duct tape and paracord packets will stay as they are. The white rectangle is a mini sewing kit with thread, buttons, pins, needles, etc. for minor repairs.

If I get a slightly larger MOLLE-compatible pouch, I'll be able to add a compass and a cotton bandana. On the other hand, the bag I plan to set up with tools also has a poncho and water filter bottle, so setting that up as a more general-purpose bag in addition to the dedicated first aid kit might be better.

Maybe that'll be a future post.

For now, I just want to encourage readers to prepare, and be creative with using what you may already have on hand instead of spending money on more stuff you may not need. Preparedness isn't about style or looking "tactical," it's about creativity and common sense. There are various adages in the military and survivalist circles using lots of P words, such as "Proper Prior Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance." Focus on that, not the shiny things people want to sell you. If you need a starting point, try my old post on Survival Kits 101.