Food Allergens Post

Tried a couple of on-the-go snacks by a company called Enjoy Life. They have three types of something called Chewy on-the-go Bars. We've tried two of them, and three of us like them so far: L, me, and my MIL. The texture/consistency reminds me a bit of Fig Newtons. One little bar is 120 - 140 calories.

We tried the Cocoa Loco (1 g of fiber) and the Sunbutter Crunch (3g of fiber).

NO: Wheat, dairy, peanuts, tree nuts, egg, soy, fish, shellfish. These two are also made without casein, potato, sesame or sulfites. We'll have to try the third one out the next time we are near the Big Y in Hadley.

Enjoy Life's business is making gluten-free foods that are free of the 8 most common allergens.
It is not cheap, but if you need some safe travel food, then here's an option. Nutritionally, I figure it is also a step-up from eating Fritos.

Some of these will definitely be making it into my bugout kit!

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On another note -- are there any non-wheat beers or ales that are decent? I'm not known for my expertise or vast experience with alcohol, so I'm curious about this. The BBC ales don't seem to bother me too much, but someone's homemade stuff set off my asthma last spring, so I'm a bit more cautious now. Thanks for any info on this.

Bugout Kit/Preparedness

The bugout kit continues to be useful. They've been revamped for winter of course, and even include sets of Thermasilk winter underwear (super stuff, folds up small and weighs almost nothing). We keep them in the car, since if the house were on fire they just wouldn't be the first thing we'd be after moving out of the house, and we know that. Besides, on-the-road is usually where they've been handy.

I keep some travel food in them, for one, and sometimes we don't have time to eat or stop to get something even, say on the way to kung fu class. I re-supply after class, when there's more time. We've used the changes of clothing on the way home from War of the Roses, when we spontaneously decided to stop at Hancock Shaker Village and hadn't planned enough modern clothing for the trip.

The first aid kits have come in handy too -- yes, even though I also keep a kit in the car as well... I'm not always on top of inventory for things, so if we run out of something in the house, the kits from the packs are more portable than the car one is. BTW, I also keep a basic first aid kit down in the barn, because the temptation to let something go for a bit until the job at hand is done is strong, and that really isn't a good idea in the barn. Hm.... I should probably make a couple more for the barn, actually.... one is on the lower level but ones on the middle and upper would be good to have.

If you search online for bugout kits you'll see a fair bit of variety in what people think you should have in a kit, but there will be overlaps. Some of it folks might not see much sense in, like rope for instance. I'm not a mountain climber! But overnight camping might need it for hanging food high up in a tree away from critters, or you may stop at a tag sale and buy something that you need to secure onto the top of your car.

I think it's also a good idea to think about what sorts of things you tend to forget to bring with you sometimes, and add those in. You might want to put a little cash in your bag, stowed well out of sight of course. Sometimes out-of-the-way places don't take checks or cards, so then you might be in a tough spot.

BTW, we throw a blanket over our packs -- makes them less desirable to a casual thieves and protects them from the sun, too. Many materials, in particular modern tents, are sensitive to UV and will age faster, so protect your investment. If you have a trunk in your vehicle, this might be a good use of that space. If you don't have a car, consider if you have a shed where you could store some things (in case of fire or flood) -- make sure to wrap up/store whatever you put out there, as animals are really good at smelling food, even through a ziploc bag. If you don't have that option, try to make a space for your bugout kit/go-bag right near the entrance/exit you use most at your home. The hall closet, by the umbrella stand, maybe you could put a nice little side table or chest in the hall by the door and keep it under/in there. When you don't have a lot of time, whether because of emergency or running late to class/work, your best chance of success at bringing all you need with you is to make things as easy as possible.