GET YOUR KIT TOGETHER

Joining up with the Streetpuppy corps is a little like joining the Marines.

Except that you don't have to go through a recruiter, or one of those goofy, teary going away parties with mom in the kitchen, wringing her hands, and weeping, "Oh, my baby is all grown up, and that nice judge gave him  - or her -the choice of the slammer or the Marines..."......and you don't have to get one of those high and tight hair things or get that ring thing out of your nose. Or eyebrow.  Or...wherever.

But, in order to soldier on in the Streetpuppy corps, you are going to have to be, or at least act like , one squared away Marine.

And that starts with the kit. 

You may call it the back pack, or that awful rolling wheel  suitcase thing that breaks down the first day you use it, or you can use a gym bag, doesn't matter, this will be the one piece of equipment which needs to carry the  few actual essentials required for life on the street.

It's the Brits who named the bag which holds the collection of articles necessary for survival the kit... so don't blame us that it wasn't named bag, or purse.

We recommend the back pack as the kit of choice.  gym bag too small, rolling wheel thing too noisy and cumbersome, and it breaks down the first day you use it.  Usually right in the middle of a busy crosswalk.

Don't chintz out on the back pack.  The cheaper packs are not built for wear and tear, we don't care how many cute things are hanging off the sides, or that Sponge Bob has endorsed it.

You'll want a plain, dark colored, thick canvass number with a whole lot of pockets, and durable straps, and industrial  strength zippers and snaps,  and the ability to carry up to 30 pounds without ripping apart just as you are trying to run from the person who has decided he wants the back pack....and everything in it.

 And everything in it, should be minimal and multi-tasking, and easily replaceable.

You're not packing a trousseau here -for the guys, that word is something that women used to call the collection of delectable lingerie and such that was put together for the honeymoon.

There is no use for lingerie in Homeless Nation, unless you have ripped it up in order to make hankies.

And you will be ripping up tank tops for hankies, so ixnay on the lingerie.

Ok.  First, a small baggie, into which you will place:  social security card;  birth certificate;  Photo ID required in your state;  health insurance card;  bus pass;  emergency notification card -unless you are really trying to get lost in homeless nation, in which case, pretend you have amnesia from the beating.
five bucks.  That's pin money, in case you are enough of a pin head that you let somebody steal the kit;
debit card, that's if you have one, and you should, and remember the pin number, and do not let anybody even know you have one of those things, it is an open invitation to kidnapping.

Now.  This small baggie does NOT go into your kit.  This small baggie is your life line.  Only an idiot would put it into the same bag holding things which are -though costly - not real hard to replace.

No.  That baggie goes around your neck, on a string -or piano wire -, or in the summer, around your waist, just under the pants line.  And do not ever, ever let anybody know this little bag exists. 

Okay.  Now the kit.  Socks.  Undies.  Flashlight.  Swiss Army Knife.  Toothbrush.  Toothpaste.  Washcloth, which will double as a towel.  Two shirts.  One extra pair of pants.  One pair of flip flops.
(that's because, and you can be sure of this...if you take your shoes off while you are sleeping, they will be stolen.)  Small pack of kleenex.  small spray cologne.  one small bug repellant. One light blanket. One sweater.   One poncho.  (forget the umbrella, too easy for an attacked to use against you as a weapon)  headband.  baseball cap.  Reading glasses..  Sun-glasses. Small bag of toiletries.  And we said small.

Don't overload with the hygiene bags at feed giveaways.  Nobody needs five bottles of shampoo.  Or hand and body lotion.  And the ladies should be allowed one lip gloss and one eye liner.

And just because the giveaways may include fabulous five year old designer jeans with the label intact, does not mean that you need them.  Who cares if Donna Karan or Calvin Klein once embraced the muscles in your butt?

The cell phone goes into your front pocket, and don't be stupid and use it in public, it is another thief magnet.

And no food.  Ants can smell that stuff five miles away, and bug repellent does not work on them.

Now, you may think all of this is too lite, even for lite traveling.

Wrong.  You are not going to need too much. And you will be replacing things as you go.  And, if it is not absolutely necessary to your survival, it's dead weight. 

And, you're not planning to stay here forever, anyway, and if you came into homeless nation with luggage, that's not a good thing.  Kind of like a trousseau.

And one more...and maybe the most important thing to put into your kit. 

We don't care if you call it the Lord,  God,  Allah,  Buddha,  or the Temple of the Blue Parrot.  Make room in your kit for the higher being who will stay with you through this perilous journey.

  And speak to and listen regularly to the Lord, God, Allah, Buddah, or the Blue Parrot, or whomever else you need to hang onto while you're in homeless nation.  The knowledge of, and the comfort of the love of that higher being will get you through what surely will be a time of hell.

And remember what Winston Churchill said at the onset of WW II  "When you're going through Hell...keep on going!"