[dropcap]I[/dropcap]’ll be honest, my friends have been known to make fun of my pantry — on more than one occasion.
They’ve taken a peek inside and teased me by saying things like, “Jill is prepared for the zombie apocalypse.” And they’re not entirely wrong.(Image Source: Getty Images)
I have a huge pantry, and, because I have the room and I like to shop the sales, I’m always stocked up.
For one, it’s convenient. And if I had to, yes, I could totally feed my family of four for a couple of weeks on my stash of dry goods alone.
We’ve got plenty of spaghetti sauce, soup, canned tuna, peanut butter, juice boxes, and snacks to keep us well-fed.
And if it’s been on sale at Costco recently and my family likes it, chances are I have a good supply.
For the record, I don’t believe in zombies and I have never considered myself to be a doomsday prepper or a survivalist.
But lately, it seems like the world is going a little crazy.
And with good reason: Natural disaster after natural disaster have left many communities reeling.
Hurricane Harvey hit my home state of Texas hard, and although my own city was relatively untouched, watching my what some of my friends went through got me thinking of how my family would really fare if we were in the path of a hurricane or some other catastrophe.
The question of “How prepared are we, really?” nagged at me again as I watched Irma barrel towards the Florida coast, and again as I watched in horror as Puerto Rico was absolutely flattened by Maria.
Our fellow Americans in Puerto Rico are still in bad shape and the problem of how to get supplies to take care of very basic needs is a very real one.
But if the recent disasters have prompted you to do some emergency prepping, Costco might have what you’re looking for.
The major wholesale retailer has rolled out three emergency food kits — costing $999.99, $3,999.99, and $5,999.99.
The $999.99 kit is designed to feed a family of four, while the higher priced options are meant for larger families or groups.
The kits all contain a one-year supply of food, and are made up of nearly 100 1-gallon cans of wheat, rice, granola, apples, bananas, peaches, strawberries, potatoes, carrots, beans, onions, corn, beef, chicken, milk, sugar, and salt.
The cans have 6,200 servings of food inside, and will last up to 25 years. (Yep — as in a quarter of a century.)
While most of us probably don’t have an extra thousand bucks in our grocery budget, the fact that this food has such a long shelf life might actually make it a practical investment in these increasingly uncertain times we’re living in.
Food kits can be ordered by Costco members via the Costco website and are shipped within five to seven business days.
The world seems to get crazier every day; having some supplies on hand in case of a natural disaster or other emergency isn’t a bad idea at all, if you ask me.
I’ve started to wonder whether my well-stocked pantry is adequate.
I’ve started thinking about whether it would be practical to add some additional storage space to our garage and set up something like this.
We can now buy peace of mind over one big thing: how we’ll feed our families in the event of disaster, nuclear war, or whatever horrible thing that is probably more of a possibility than we want to admit.
If you look at it that way, maybe a grand isn’t such an impossible amount to scrape up.
For those who can’t afford or don’t want to buy a one-year supply of food, though, Wise Foods sells smaller amounts at Walmart, Bed, Bath and Beyond, and even Amazon.
Am I going to rush right out and immediately order a year’s emergency food supply? No.
Do I look at people who do so as crazy doomsday preppers? Also no. Not anymore, at least.
But the next time someone teases me about my pantry being stocked for the zombie apocalypse, I’ll smile and take it as good-natured ribbing.
And some little part of me is going to wonder if my value-sized jars of spaghetti sauce and stockpile of juice boxes is really enough.
By Babble.com – http://bit.ly/2yIVL1K