Musings about bail out bags - pt1: From the nightstand to grab bag (i.e. grab it during bump in the night or when the FD makes you leave because of fire)

Lots of folks have a "night stand" gun. I do. But what happens when you need to be mobile with the pistol? Do you go around/out with it in hand? Depending on where you live that may not be such a good idea.

I usually have a holster nearby but pajamas don't make a good platform. A possible solution? The "man bag"....I have posted about my Maxpedition Fatboy Jumbo a few times now and maybe I am just trying to justify its expense, but I am finding that it comes in more handy than just as a quick way to pack a pistol while walking the dog in the summer (and carry dog treats and water). It makes a great "grab bag."

Think of this scenario--there is loud knocking at your door in the morning. A voice says: "This is the Fire Department, you need to evacuate your house immediately!" -- Glancing out the window you see a fire truck hooking up houses to your nearby hydrant.

I give you this example because it happened to us. Our next door house was on fire and the fireman said that we were potentially only a minute or two away from our "flashing" and being in flames too!

We literally grabbed pants, jackets, shoes and anything important into the safe on the way out. My Glock 23 on the night stand came with me in my Maxpedition. Along with a couple spare mags (and dog treats and poop bags).

Luckily, the FD came in time to put out the fire and save our house from "flashing." The neighbor's house was not so lucky. It was condemned from fire/smoke/water damage.

But what if our house had caught on fire? Scary thought but it could happened through no action of our own. As much I like my Maxpedition it would not make a good bag if we had to stay in a hotel overnight (or longer).

Thus, IMO the next step is the 24hr bag (or variation like the 72hour bag). So, that's next...