I have a full package of Keebler snack crackers in the glove box, and 2 rolls of TP with the clothes.
Forgive, but the truck has so much in it that there are some items I left off the list (like the 2 Crazy Creek chairs, and the box of gallon ziploc bags, and the package of moleskin, etc.).
Keeping too much food in the truck is impractical, as it will spoil, and if I have to hotfoot it out of town I don’t think I’ll have much trouble finding commodities later.
I also have a couple of caches I’ve placed in Utah, central Nevada & Arizona in case things go badly wrong, and I know of a much larger stash (of a friend) which includes guns, ammo, salt and sugar.
I appreciate that your comment was prolly a bit of haha, but I’m confident that I could scram and be able to survive.
Are you expecting Zombies or nuclear war? I don’t mean to sound snarky, but that’s a lot of shit to haul around every day. Seven gallons of water? Firewood? A kite?
A-Z London and road atlas of UK plus whatever country I’m in
Roll of kitchen towel
Antibac hand gel
£20 note and some parking change
Lots of tapes (yes, it is a very old stereo) and an adaptor for CD player/iPod
Strong shopping bag
First aid kit
Ice scraper/squeegee thing
Lighter
Book
A box of car crap like spare fan belt, oil filter etc, which honestly I will never use myself because I’m incapable, but I have nowhere else to keep the box. Also it contains oil, antifreeze etc, which I can and do use!
Bottled water
Cereal bars and boiled sweets
Binoculars
Hiking boots and poles
Torch
currently also a gardening fork and spade, again because I have nowhere to keep them, and more rubbish than is reasonable.
Currently:
Maps (city and provincial)
Window shades
CDs
Tire pressure gauge
Umbrella
Baby wipes
Kleenex
First aid kit
Bug spray and sun screen
Window wash fluid
Couple bottles of water (they get unpleasantly warm, but when you’re thirsty it’s nice)
Coupon book
A penguin in a t-shirt
For winter I had a shovel, sleeping bag, energy bars, winter boots (they’re too awkward to drive in… I tried) and space blankets. Mom insisted.
Trauma bag (stocked)
Fire helmet
Visibility vest
Coveralls
Rock climbing gloves
A fishing rod
Tackle box
Folding chair
Jug of antifreeze
Wiper solution
Road atlas
400 W Inverter
Halloween prop dismembered arm (hangs out of the trunk the month of October, and 1 April)
My fire service radio is with me wherever I go, but it doesn’t live in the car like the stuff above.
Oh, yeah, forgot to mention I have two cardboard cartons in the back of my SUV. I put things to go to the thrift store in one. The other holds old towels and blankets and bags and cans of pet food and such that I drop off at the SPCA every so often. (When the cartons are empty they are used to hold bags of groceries on shopping days.)
Amazingly enough, I keep next to nothing in my car. It’s about the only thing I own that stays pristinely clean. Occasionally I’ll try to keep beach blankets in the trunk, but they never get dry after I use them at the beach if I don’t take them out, so despite my best efforts, they get taken out and never put back.
A lot of this is probably because it’s a convertible, and you really can’t get in the habit of leaving anything that’s worth anything in it without risk of it getting stolen.
The OTHER car, the one that’s technically Mr. Athena’s, has all sorts of crap in it, but nothing I leave there intentionally, it’s just stuff that gets left there.
I have some stuff that’s not stock but mandatory where I live (chains to put on the tires and other safety items; the chains are only required in winter but my house is in an area that has been known to get snow in August). The only item I’ve been known to put in any car I drove is an aluminum heat screen. Right now I also have a bunch of pillows, for Mom.
There’s a big carton in the back of my PT Cruiser, containing:
A rhinestone tiara.
A red wig (female) and a styrofoam head.
Big T-shaped pins, to pin the wig onto the styrofoam head.
A gold wand with glitter and sequins.
A rainbow clown wig.
A bag of New Year’s party favors from the Millennium.
A Harley-Davidson dog collar (I don’t have a dog).
2 feather boas, one red and one black with gold sparkles.
A pair of castanets and lace fan from Spain.
A rain stick.
A print of Picasso’s Guernica.
An 8" inflatable Godzilla.
A pair of women’s tap shoes, size 12.
And yes, it’s all my stuff, and I’ve actually used it all.
Winter survival kit: hat, gloves, sweatpants and shirt, socks, blankets candles and matches, energy bars.
Other stuff:
Handicap sticker
Sparkly dangly thing hanging from the rear view mirror
Bed Bath and Beyond coupons. I love the store but won’t go without the coupons, so I store them in the car.
Hand sanitizer
Napkins
Pens
Small notepad
Altoids
Liquor store discount cards
CDs (which I never listen to)
Tape measure
Latex gloves (to keep my hands from getting greasy if I break down or something)
Mini 1st aid kit
Coins for parking meter
Road atlas
Tire pressure gauge
Back seat:
Magazine
Mini umbrella
Daughter’s booster seat
Trunk:
Gym bag
Large/golf umbrella
Empty gas can (in case I have to walk to a station)
Paper towels
Battery charger
Jumper cables
Flashlight & spare batteries
Rain poncho
Snow scrapers & brushes
Have to mention- as someone who hasn’t used it in about 20 years, it amuses the hell out of me that people keep cologne in their cars. I’m imagining a side-of-the-road breakdown situation which could be remedied by the urgent application of some eau de toilette.
Seriously, as a rescue beacon it’s a fantastic idea.