How Much Is Enough?

I have seen this question posed on many blogs and forums about preparedness.
How much _________ is enough?
The blank can be filled in with many items:
Food
Water
Guns
Ammo
Fuel (gas or diesel)
First Aid Supplies
Pet Food
Tools
Etc....

It is really a hard question for many of us. How much IS *enough*.? Is there ever really *enough*?
I have seen people that (I thought ) were a bit ridiculous about their preps.
Usually when the person has food storage enough to feed a small army for 2 years, they are seriously lacking in another area, such as guns & ammo, first aid supplies, etc.
We have all seen the guy with 40 guns and 10 thousand rounds of ammo for each...and in his pantry are just a couple of bags of beans.
I have seen people with first aid supplies that would rival a decent sized emergency room that didn't own a single gun and their pantry was filled with mainly microwave meals.

I think the best way to be *prepped* is to approach it thoughtfully and in a balanced manner.

First all, THE most important *prep* is:

KNOWLEDGE

What good are 40 buckets of wheat if you have no clue how to prepare it? It was great that your friend at the hospital *hooked you up* with some *premo* first aid supplies, but if you have no knowledge on how to use them, you will be a danger to anyone you try to assist.Having guns and ammo is a great idea---unless you don't practice!
Study is a bad word to some folks, but a delightful one to me. I study cookbooks as I were cramming for the SATs! I experiment with recipes. "What if I didn't have THIS ingredient? What would I substitute?" I have studied yeast as if my life depended on it. The care and feeding of, how to *capture* wild yeast for baking, etc. Why? Because someday I may not have easy access to yeast for baking and , darnit, I like bread!
I study first aid manuals with the same intensity. Why? Because someday my life or someone else's may be dependent upon my knowledge. Same goes for medicinal herbs.
So the VERY first thing you want in your *preps* is KNOWLEDGE and SKILLS.
You can NEVER have *enough* of  Knowledge and Skills!

Next, you want:
TOOLS
Tools can be categorized as items that will allow you to make the best use of your *preps*. A decent wheat grinder, reloading equipment, food dehydrator, canning jars, garden rakes, etc. These are all tools.
Yes, you can eat that wheat without grinding it, but after a while, that would be pretty boring!

Lastly, you need the actual:
PREPS
I suggest to everyone that asks me about getting started to do it one month at a time. Work your budget out for that month and figure out how much money you have left for groceries. Include one 50 pound bag of rice and a 20 pound bag of pinto beans on your grocery list. Not that expensive!
I know storage may be an issue.
Currently, because of a shopping trip my fella made today, we have this on the washer:

That's a total of 200 pounds of rice and 80 pounds of pinto beans.
NOT effective storage, but tomorrow I will fix that.
Here is how you can store a massive amount of beans and rice in a fairly small space:

 Yes, those are soda bottles, 2 and 3 liter soda bottles. I scald them out, dry them out completely and add a couple of bay leaves to each bottle. If I have space in my freezer, I also freeze each bottle overnight to make sure no insects are present. The bay leaves keep any insect eggs that may be present from hatching. You can also do this with flour and just about any grain.
The bottles you see above are in a very tiny closet in my laundry room that has six shelves. You can also store them under your bed or in any other nooks and crannies you have around the house.

If you can afford more than one bag of each, get two of each. Maybe get a bucket of wheat. A lot of Wal-Marts and Costco's and Sam's Club locations now carry *prep* supplies, including wheat, dehydrated vegetables and fruit, etc. Buy what you can afford.

Remember to rotate what you buy for preps. I eat rice, and so does the rest of the family. We have rice curries, home-made rice cakes, rice & kim-chi, etc., a rice based dish at least twice a week!

When you have a three month supply of food, start looking into other preps...guns, first aid, etc.
And DON'T FORGET WATER!!!
If you do not have a well/spring of your own, bottle your own water (easy to do in 2 liter bottles) and squirrel that away, too!

Two and three liter bottles are easily obtained, even if you do not drink soda. Get friends and family to save them for you, check your local recycling center to see if they will give you some, etc.

With ALL your preps, try to take 3 month *bites*. It is less intimidating that way. Watch for sales of prep items. Remember to rotate your supplies and always pay attention to expiration dates, especially on first aid supplies!
My basic philosophy is to have 1 year's worth of supplies.
If I had one years worth of supplies, would I stop *prepping*?
No...because I am always adding to my knowledge and skills base in order to use all my preps more effectively.
How much is enough for you?