I must have grown up in “abnormal bias area or times”. Most of this sort of stuff wasn’t called prepping, it was considered common sense, and everyone I knew did it.
My biggest problem with respect to my car, is that sometimes my family will help me out by cleaning out my car. Sometimes they take stuff in the house that I consider a necessary “just in case of problems” item, and maybe I don’t notice it for a day or two.
You and I grew up in a time when “things” weren't so available and there was no “911” to call when someone got hurt or had an emergency illness hit suddenly. It wasn't easy to get to a grocery store as there wasn't one on every corner. People had to be self sufficient, store what they needed from one season to another, can their own homegrown food, and be prepared with supplies, from medical to food to water.
What happened is, by the time our kids grew up, there was gobs of food in multiple grocery stores and there were drug stores everywhere and even gas stations sold food and bottles of water and first aid supplies. Supplies everywhere, easy to get to, so why bother to store anything - just go to the store when they need it.
We now have a whole country with that mindset. Those of us who prepare for emergencies are now considered “nut cases” by that generation and the next one, to store anything when it is so near to get it - and, nothing bad could happen anyway and if it did, the government will send people (FEMA) to give them what they need.
I knew most people in this country wouldn't do jack to help themselves, when Hurricane Ike went through Houston and where I lived north of Houston, and people in Houston started begging for water as soon as Ike departed Houston and water in the tap stopped. All these people begging for water, had not stored ANY water at all!
Power had gone out, but I had a portable TV running on batteries and saw this happen in Houston. I couldn't believe it, these people had stored NOTHING, no water and no food. Well, FEMA can't get immediately to a place after a hurricane goes through. They have to get there first and that took time to get MREs and water to places to pass these items out.
These types of people are going to die if the emergency is so bad FEMA can't get there.
Back in 1998, I thought about how I could survive if trucks stopped for whatever reason. Then, I considered what would happen if there was no power. These are connected, as trucks would stop if there was no power and water would also stop as it takes power to run water plants and send water through pipes. I decided I had to provide for my survival and I wouldn't trust my survival to FEMA or any power company or any water provider - they didn't know me and I didn't know them. So, I made a plan and began to store what I needed to live on my own, not needing other people to save me.
I went back in my mind to the time of our parents and grandparents who had to live independently, providing for themselves. I put together my plan to do what they did and it was easier with modern methods I had to do that.
My advice to others is for them to put together a plan to survive on their own - don't depend on others to save their life.