July 31, 2011

Mess Kit

When you are broke and houseless your day becomes focused around procuring the basic necessities of shelter and food. This sounds melodramatic even to me, after all: I'm not wandering the high country dressed in bear skin. Despite my relative comfort the bare necessities become very important when you don't have refrigeration and meals are reliant on fire and clear weather. This is my round about explanation for why this weeks posts have been so heavily centered around cooking, and today's continues in the same vein.

My tin can stove has been working well for heating water and cooking easily stirred food, but I wanted more versatility, especially on weekends when it becomes by only method of heating meals. While in Wal-Mart this morning I came across this mess kit which is the perfect size for my stove. It was $5.50 (can't beat that) and, while the frying pan handle is pretty flimsy, the whole thing works great. I had to raise the pot on two bolts to give more air flow to the kerosene, but my veggies in cream of chicken cooked evenly and without burning to the bottom. Everything fits together like a Chinese puzzle (but less confusing), so it's compact, light, and easy to store.

Every time I buy a cool gadget or useful item, I think about where I'm going to put it. Each inch that these things take up is an inch of sleeping space that I loose. Something like this can easily fit into my kitchen bag, and I think it will be worth both the space and the money I forfeit.

5 comments:

  1. I think I still have the remnants of one of those around here somewhere. It served me well. I know I still have the remnants of a larger model (too big for you) I acquired in the '70's because my bride still makes soup in the large pot.
    Money well spent because It's not only a starter kit for a larger space but it's a back up kit as well. Unless you somehow punch a hole in it you are likely to have it for a long time.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I still have my mess kit from girlscouts in the um...late 70's early 80's. I use it all the time when camping

    You think of the greatest things. I truly admire you

    Judy

    ReplyDelete
  3. Yup, used those mess kits before too.

    Do you sleep very good in your car? The times I've slept in a car - for whatever reason - I've slept just awful. But I guess you probably get used to the confined space?

    I read a few of your posts - cute shirt you found at Goodwill. I get all of my boys' clothes there :-)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Lisa, I have a big bed in my car, so it's pretty comfortable. It still took some getting use to, but I've learned not to roll around too much.

    ReplyDelete

I love mail so leave a message, ask a question, or give me some advice. You can also email me at Thetuckerbag@gmail.com