One weekend — Saturday morning to Sunday evening — with about $150 and the errands you'd half-run anyway. By Sunday night you will have a real foundation under every system in this book: money, water, food, power, papers, and people. Not finished. Founded.
One trip, one list, roughly $150 — all prices are estimates; your receipt will vary.
| Item | Target | Est. cost |
|---|---|---|
| Water — 3-day supply | 1 gal/person/day × 3 days minimum (CDC figure — full source in the book) | $20–30 |
| Pantry, first pass | 10–12 shelf-stable items your family already eats | $40 |
| Batteries + lights | Spares in your sizes; 1 headlamp or lantern if you own none | $25 |
| First aid kit | Mid-range family kit; gap-fill next month | $30 |
| CO alarm | If any level of your home lacks one | $25 |
| Total | ~$150 |
The weekend counts as done when you can tick these:
Anything unticked isn't failure — it's just Tuesday's list. Which is the whole method.
The full chapter includes the hour-by-hour Saturday and Sunday schedule, the $75 and split-weekend adaptations, the renter version, and the 90-day path for weeks 2–12.