STOCK PILING OR STOCKING UP - Is There A Difference

 Good morning, friends!

We are expecting full sun and upper 60s *F for the day. Bedding is all going on the line today.

I want to start using Thursdays to talk more about prepping. Intentional prepping, to be more specific.

I think the Doomsday Prepper series on Discovery channel several years ago gave 'being prepared' a bad connotation. Being prepared (in my opinion) doesn't mean we build bunkers, arm ourselves for protection against outside forces or stockpiling items we won't eat/ use but might want to barter with them. Folks, if the SHTF, I'm not talking to people to barter. I'll have my supplies - items we will actually use and eat.

Last week, governments in 34 countries suggested we  have a minimum of three days  of essentials. HERE  is the link to the article I'm sourcing.This isn't a 'fear news report'. What they are talking about is something I've always said on this channel. I'm about Emergency Preparedness. Preparing for being without power for several days, not being able to leave your home because of serious inclement weather, having enough food and water to sustain you for that length of time for, as the news suggests, 'until assistance can get to you'. The key thing taken from a podcast by former FBI deputy director, Dan Bongino, is the military bases are stocked up for 90 days and you should be to. But to at least start with 3 days and build from there.

When I asked my daughter about the news report, she told me "everyone should have a 90 day stockpile in their house that they rotate through in order to keep it fresh and work. Yesterday, today, next week. Tornados, fires, snow earthquakes, power failures, etc. We are never immune."

I'm so proud of my daughter. She sold her trucking company three years ago but still works with long-haul drivers and has her own permitting company - Coast To Coast Permits.

courtesy of pixabay - rmpublishing

She insists that her drivers have 3 days supplies in their trucks. The road washes out, who is coming for you? How do they get there? Or that mountain passes closes due to an avalance?  They've been stuck on mountains for 72 hours eating their slow cooker chili, drinkg their coffee and getting some much needed rest. She 'encourages' them to have the basic necessities should they need them. 

The same is true for us at home. So are we STOCKPILING or STOCKING UP?

Accourding to Cambridge dictionary:

Stockpiling is the the act of accumulating and storing a large reserve supply of goods, materials, or resources for future use, especially in anticipation of a shortage, emergency, or price increase. 

The key phrase there is 'for future use'.

Now let's look at stocking up?

Technically, they mean the same thing but here's where I tweak the meaning. For me, stocking up means building the rotating pantry. Not for 'future' use but for working through on a day to day basis. This doesn't mean I have a large supply but the everyday items I work through when preparing meals and want to have on hand for the short-term... that 3-10 day I might not have access to the things I need... and can replenish (rotating the stock) when I can get out.

While I'm a week behind Leisa's 100-Day Pantry Challenge (only by a week), I encourage you to check out her video and take a look at your own 'stock up'. I'll be back next Thursday to catch us up and let you know what I'm doing. In the mean time, check out Leisa's (Suttons Daze) video and find a starting point. 

Also, let me know in the comments below... Are you Stocking Up or Stockpiling?

Be safe, Be prepared, Be Blessed!

~ Kelly