I'm curious how different the answers will be. DH and I were discussing this earlier today.

Don't include food because that's a given...

Are you talking in terms of money or in terms of items (clothing, car, etc.)?

yeah, and how about mortgage? Do we include our current mortgage or a realistic-bare-bones mortgage?

not money, items.

You can include money if you'd like but I was thinking in terms of items.

In this society that is a loaded question. It would depend SO greatly on where you live and what your skills are that I am not sure if I could even answer correctly for myself, you know? But I'll give it a shot;

I would need my tools and my canning and baking and cooking supplies. I would need my gardening things and my bike. I would need my bike trailer too. I would need at least 6 outfits that fit (seasonally app), and 10 pairs of unders, two pairs of good seasonlly app shoes... I would need my glasses or contacts. Good clean water very close to me, some way to get out of the rain and be warm (ie: with walls), if it was fire heated than firewood. I would need a decent place to sleep... I hurt if I sleep on the floor, but I could probobly get used to it if I needed to... Access to land that I could garden on, access to people who travel to get the other things I can't grow/can, access to water for bathing and such...

Sticks for hair picks, peppermint twigs for teeth brushing, I don't brush my hair anyway... Many other things I could find in nature if I needed to... tables, chairs, shelves, etc I could make easily and have... what else? I am sure I am missing a bunch of things... like I said this is a very loaded question.

Not much. Just think of college students.

Off the top of my head, I "need" a place to live, basic clothes, a car to get to work, basic food items and a computer for my odd jobs/extra income. The rest is just gravy. Actually, the computer is probably gravy too - I don't know that I need need the computer, but the extra income I can make with it helps pay the bills. But we could survive without it.

Good, thought-provoking question!

do you mean just for me , or for my family? the answer is vastly different for just me as oppossed to me and kids. Personally, I could live with a toothbrush, toothpaste, moisturizer for my face, soap, someplace to take a shower, 4 or 5 pair of underwear, two or three outfits that were seasonally appropriate, a pair of comfortable shoes, someplace warm, dry, and soft to sleep, and my knitting.

My kids, well, let's just say that list would quadruple in size, LOL!