Building A Bug Out Bag Even Your Wife Could Love

Lots of people have made great and comprehensive guides on how to make a bug out bag, from a leftist, community preparedness standpoint (I especially like Get Yourself a Go Bag by Margret Killjoy). This post is largely not that. This is about how to build a backpack full of gear which will help you in an emergency and also on a random Tuesday. It should help you eat Taco Bell in your car better, occasionally surprise those around you with all the useful butch shit you have handy, and be useful and cute enough that it doesn’t piss off your beautiful wife.

Maybe, it could even make you want to kill yourself a little less. I made my first foray into prepping the summer before I went to college, while I was coming out of a period of intense depression. Putting together some survival gear and imagining myself doing cool bushcraft out in the wilderness was a welcome balm to feeling ready to give up on life in my suburban childhood bedroom. If that’s all assembling a go bag does for you, it’s still very much worthwhile!

However, this is quite predictably when I bought the stupidest shit I have in my bugout bag. Most of it is still in there, since it’s mostly small, light and might someday be useful. Among other things, I bought waterproof matches and tinder, a “pocket chainsaw” unlikely to effectively cut into more than a twig, along with basic first aid, snacks, space blankets, a compass, and paracord. I’ve carted this all for about ten years now, and out of these items, the only thing that ever saw use was the first aid kit. Even the snacks weren’t useful, because they were too tasty, and got eaten up while still in my suburban bedroom. 

My current bag lives in the back of my car, because I am generally in the same location as my car. Your mileage may vary depending on your lifestyle! I also keep a big box of disaster supplies in our apartment, but mostly different items (i.e., my beloved solar generator, Jackery, lots of candles, larger power banks, shelf-stable food, etc). 

Since I’ve been carting this bag around for about 10 years, I feel qualified to report out on some of what I actually have used. You might say, “El, in a real crisis wouldn’t you need different stuff?,” but I think the majority of a real crisis would be very much like everyday life, except you’d be, y’know, bugged out. 

• Water bottles, Gatorade and/or electrolytes, boring snacks. I use these all the time, and replace them all the time.  Gatorade is also good to have because, if you live somewhere hot, it’s not unlikely you’ll encounter someone overheating a bit in the summer. Boring snacks so you don’t eat them all up. 
• Waterproofing. I just put everything in my bag in various gallon-size ziplock bags, by category. One time a pack of sodas exploded in my trunk right on my bug out bag and everything was fine. (Pro tip: don’t leave soda in your trunk for extended periods of time).  
• First aid. Most used items for me are: normal bandaids, tiny scissors, blister bandages, any anti-itch goop, and alcohol wipes. I have lots of other stuff, but largely unused. 
• Single-use chemical cold packs. These get their own line because they are very useful for first aid, or on a hot day. I also keep a big-ass box of these in our house because I worry about wet-bulb temperatures sometimes and it makes me feel a bit better. 
• Ibuprofen and Benadryl. I like the little single-use packs, which feel less sketchy to share than a few pills rolling around in my purse (I, personally, am not above Bottom Of Purse NSAIDs). 
• Utensils and straws. I mostly just jam leftover packets from takeout into the front pocket of my bug out bag. Also useful for when Taco Bell doesn’t give you shit in the bag except your loaded nacho fries). I also have a metal spork, which I recently used to pry open my car’s gas flap when it got stuck while I was driving around already on empty. 
• Ugly sunglasses. If they’re not ugly, you’re going to take them out of the bug out bag and use them. Pack your ugliest pair. 
• Spare Covid masks. I keep 3M Auras, but also black KN95s and surgical masks, since not everyone likes the same things. 
• Chemical handwarmers. I keep these shits everywhere, and think they’re so useful. In the winter, they’re also great to hand out in addition to a little cash to your unhoused neighbors. 
• Pads, tampons, and baby wipes. I don’t wanna see any of you cis boys out here with paracord but not this. God fucking help me. 
• Tooth-brushing stuff, but especially plastic single-use flossers. These are a real top winner. I am constantly re-stocking these. 
• Single-use packed makeup wipes and body wipes. Even if you don’t wear makeup! Your femme might need them! 
• A comfortable change of clothes. Ideally also one for your S.O. as well (remember, we are building a bug out bag even a wife could love). 
• Hand sanitizer. I even had some in my bag circa early Covid when no one could find any for love or money, which made me feel very smug.
• A flashlight. Mine is waterproof and floats in water. I keep batteries, but not in the flashlight, so I don’t run the risk of them exploding in the flashlight. So far, the same one I bought in high school works great. 
• Mylar/space blanket. I technically have only used these to insulate my worm bin against especially cold nights, but they take up almost no space and might save your life if you get cold and wet. 
• Zip ties. Good for keeping bits and pieces of your car on, in a pinch. Not that I’ve ever had to do that.

Here are a few things I haven’t used, but I would recommend anyway: 

• Narcan and the training on how to use it. I carry this with me everywhere, not just in the bugout bag. 
• BleedStop and/or Quikclot. I also want to (but have not yet) take a Stop The Bleed course and add a tourniquet. 
• Spare glasses, contact solution, and contact case. I am shocked I haven’t had to use these. If you can see natty-style, first of all fuck you, secondly, this might help out someone in your life who can’t. 
• Water purification tablets. Things did not get quite this serious for me during the Great Richmond Area boil advisory, but besties, I was worried they might. Bonus points for an empty wide-mouth water bottle and some lemon packets to make things taste better (wife-approved). Everything can go in the water bottle and stay dry, too. 

As a final word, things that go in your bug out bag are also mostly great to give away. It feels fantastic to have water or something warm to offer your neighbors! Lots of this stuff is also good for protests, where folks might be overheating or needing first aid. I teach undergrads, so I also just like to make sure I always have a spare tampon and some Bandaids, even if no one has maintained the lab first aid kits. I think it’s really important to maintain the attitude that prepping stuff isn't for hoarding, it’s for sharing. 

Happy bag-building!