Yep, it is real easy to go overboard ain't it. I try to think in terms of what I can comfortably carry on my person should the need arise. I think something on the order of a small cheap backpack or duffle bag full of essentials is the max for day to day transit situations. If you know you are going to be in a situation with an elevated risk factor, then augment your basics with what makes sense, but still think in terms of minimalist.

That said, have a BOB that is more robust yet easy to stow, so that if TSHTF situation comes up you can grab it and go, but you don't have to have it with you or in the vehicle otherwise.

I keep a daypack sized backpack with my semi-EDC goods in it with about 2 cubic feet of stowage max. This is not encumbering in the trunk of a car, and is easily donned and transportable should I need to go afoot instead. Let's face it, if I can get by for two weeks with a 50 lb pack out in the nasty wilderness, then a 10-12 lb daypack full of essentials ought to do me well enough for a few days. The BOB in my garage has the other 40 lbs of gear, and the 4 water jugs sitting next to it take care of what's left if things got really bad and I had to run away.

I look at it like this; I can put a full ton of gear into my rig for a two week stint in the Cascades in winter and have a home away from home. If I can find a water source near where I can pitch camp, I can be there all winter if I want to, save for maybe running out of food, which one elk in the pot would resolve. Of course, I've spent two weeks at elk camp with 50 lbs of gear and a rifle, too. It can go either way.