Waxing or waning?

Alternating preps is a great idea Mr Pete!

Thats great to hear Fractus!

Skills can be vital!

Same as Mrpete, Alternate my preps. Buying and rotating stock, going out in the field to practice skills or just to get out and recharge the batteries. In the downtime or at work scour the net for something new to try.

The wife and I have a system to stop that, we use lists.
1/ list of things we need to continually stock up on, ie: food items, replace what you use plus 1.
2/ List of items we need, starting with the cheapest, then most important regardless of price.
3/ Save for big ticket items (find big ticket items at cheapest price, my wife's fav hobby, she is like a tigress, she stalks the item, waits for just the right time, then pounces and goes for the kill. So far she has never paid full price for anything).
4/ Study and research items, techniques, skills.
5/ Practise skills on regular basis.
6/ Do away with things that cost money that we do not need.

Weekly, we work on our budget, to find areas we can either save in, or areas we can earn more money from.
Daily, we look for new things to learn, at least one new thing each, we then study this and then pass it to the other.
Make it a game, make it your hobby, passion, obsession (choose another descriptor, whatever works for you to keep you excited).
Keep things fun, why would you do it if you stopped enjoying it. That's the big killer for preppers, we get dragged down in the drudgery of the task, instead of realising that it can be dang fun while at the same time, save your life in the end. Always remember why you are prepping.

Anyhow, that's my simple thoughts on the subject.

My biggest issue was feeling overwhelmed. I made lists of those things we needed if we lost power, like lights, heating, cooking, water and although each category has another category inside that, ie WATER - water tank - 1000ltr eBay - check; then timber for stand check; debris sieve - eBay check; new guttering and lockable tap - final job before filling it. I sometimes feel its like having a house within another house!! Hubby is taking care of these things and we try to allocate $50 a week. I'm concentrating on the food storage. One thing that hubby did was show me where the sewerage thingy was in our yard. IF we loose power, the pumping stations will only have backup generators. They will need fuel. If there is an issue, sewerage will not be able to get away and will 'back up' into houses via floor waste, toilet etc. If this happens, the last thing you want is untreated sewage in your home!! Depending where it is, the cap on the sewerage pipe will need to be broken off. This might mean you have raw sewerage for awhile in your yard, but even though its dangerous etc. it's better than thru your home. Also, check out where your neighbours are - hopefully their outlet doesn't run next to your fence. Our list includes a portable toilet and there may come a time when waste has to be buried, but hygiene will be most important to stop the spread of disease. BTW. There is live enzymes 300 that you can buy to put in portable toilets. Does anyone know where you buy them? Chemicals will be used initially, but once you use these little critters, you don't need to use chemicals as they break down waste naturally.