You know.

after reading the last post a buddy of mine made here I have come to do some hard thinking about the things I carry. He summed it up good that you never know what is going to go wrong but chances are it may NOT be what you expected. In the end survival = coming home alive, regardless of what went wrong. as such there are items . matches for example that may be of use in other situations than what we had intended them for. far too often when I think about a survival senario I think about being lost in the woods like he stated in his post but it never occurs to me that my chances of being lost are a hell of a lot less than most other things that can go wrong. I guess there is no way to plan for everything but some things like matches can have other uses than lighting a fire for survival. I normally carry sparking tools instead but it couldnt hurt to have a couple on hand in case of the unexpected. granted not everyone needs to light time fuse either but there are items in my psk that I really need to re-evaluate in terms of use. I keep a mini back up knife in my psk because everyone else I know does but really, WHY? That space could be occupied by something far much more likely to be used. I carry a folder, a fixed blade and a multi-tool in the field so what are my REAL chances of breaking all of them and relying on the mini knife? I also carry a mini button compass to back up my big compass which is a back up my GPS. is this really necessary? I carry a mini fishing kit out of habit but I have yet to even HEAR of one saving a persons life. I also carry a mini vial of pain killers in case I get hurt but pain never killed anyone, hypothermia however kills lots of people where I live. I bet I could carry 12 extra matches in that space. A needle and thread? a sewing awl ? honestly, You never know when you may need to do some tayloring while waiting for rescue. I read books about making your own clothing and stuff but I hope it doesent come to that if I get lost on a hike. even if i do I could improvise an awl or a needle and about half the other stuff I THINK I need to have with me always. I bet tape will cover the hole in my jacket just fine.

The sad part is I was one of the guilty ones who made fun of taurus for packing matches in a psk geared for the sand box. I asked him why the hell he would need them in a place where its is so warm. he replied with some smart ass comment along the lines of. I can ALWAYS find a use for matches, in mostly any situation, but what the hell are you going to do with your fishing kit in the sand? I may or may not find a use for the matches but I know for sure you wont use the fishing kit. you may agree or disagree with this statement but it sure as hell got me sitting here thinking about how I am going to tear apart my psk and rebuild it from the ground up.
I think the truth about what I carry now is that only half of it would actually be of any use to me.

so there it is.

just when I think I have my psk the way I wants it now I realize that half of it can be better. There are items I need, there are items I simply think I need. back to the drawing board.

screw you taurus. half way across the glob and now you got me changing my mind and tearing apart my gear.....again!

The question I am asking myself as I sit here is what items do I absolutely NEED to cover MOST situations that I MAY be faced with? and what is just for making me FEEL better?

so here I am with my stuff laid out scratching my head.

I guess its safe to assume that a few matches can help.