Susan,
My wife and I have recently been pondering the same thing. We have been watching the Documentaries on CNN, and the "You Were Warned", one took us back a bit. It was based on a report OUR Gov did on Oil reserves.
On this basis, we are looking at setting up to do one of two things, Shelter in Place, or Bug Out. The only thing that we Both heavily agree on is the idiocy of the Gov's idea that you should be self sufficient for 3 days.....I have one word in response to that ....Katrina!
We both agree that 30 days would be more realistic.....and infinitely safer for the both of us. We are both Disabled, I am a Vet and she has had some serious health problems in the past. With all this in mind, and the restriction of a fixed income (Mil. Vet), we are still working towards that 30 day goal. We want to be Totally self sufficient......not waiting in the dark for an Army Cargo truck to come by and throw us an MRE and a bottle of water! If any of you Great people have any idea's or tip's, I'll gladly take them in mind!

Krell

Krell,

I agree that the 3 day plan is shortsighted. I'm trying to build up to one week before the end of summer and gradually keep adding. Being on a limited budget (I'm a teacher) makes it difficult, but creativity, patience and shopping around can help. I've found Wal-mart and Target superstores to be a treasure trove of supplies.

For example, I've bought the following over the the past month:
- Tuna Salad Kits (includes 3 oz of Tuna, crackers, mayo spread and relish) for about $1.47 at Walmart. The expiration wasn't until late 2007 and I would throw it my lunchbox at the expire date approach and replace with other stuff.
- Powdered Gatorade, $.20 per packet. Makes 32 oz and fits easily in a kit.
- First Aid Kit, $.99 at SuperTarget. It's really a 3" x 3" x 3/4" plastic box with bandaids. Now I have a good box to hold my own FAK that I previously kept in a ziploc.

I live on the Dallas/Denton/Collin county border. If want to exchange ideas and sales, I'd be happy to help.

BTW - Thanks for serving our country. I didn't serve and I'm truly grateful to those who have.