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My mom had a minor stroke last week and was unable to speak. (She's fine now, thank God.) But when it happened, we had no idea where her "stuff" was - her insurance info, her bank accounts, even the location of the keys to her house was a mystery. Ultimately, we were able to get everything pulled together, but it was a waste of precious time that we could've spent on other, more important things.




If there's ever a time when you don't want to be caught unorganized, it's in the middle of a health crisis. You need certain documents on hand and ready to go when you're in situations like these. Today I'll show you how I've gotten my procrastinating booty in gear (finally) and made my very own essential information kit.




What do you need?





It took a crisis like this for me to realize that if I or my spouse ever become incapacitated, whoever comes behind us and tries to figure out paperwork is basically up Sh*t Creek without a paddle. So! First, I had to figure out what exactly it was I needed to have on hand. This would be:





• Up-to-date medical insurance information


• An updated will


• Power of attorney information


• Life insurance info


• A basic guide to your bank accounts - numbers, passwords


• A basic list of bills in case someone else needs to help you pay them


• Doctor and vet info


• Spare keys for both house and car






Now, this was just my list for me and my family. You can customize it as you see fit, but these were the most pressing items I had to track down for my mom last week. I'll probably add to this list as time goes by, but it's a good start for an essential info kit that your family and friends will be able to utilize in order to help you more completely.





Best ways to organize your info





Obviously, some of this information is not going to be able to go onto a computer, and that's actually (believe it or not) a good thing. Not everyone who will be in charge of taking care of you should you be medically incapacitated is the computer-savvy ninja that you are, so let's make this as simple and easy access as possible. You have a few options that are written in order of what works best:







• First, start a paper trail: All your paperwork in one file in one place couldn't be easier. Make copies and hand them to your significant other and one (or two) friends and or family members that you trust, literally, with your life.



• Next, scan and save: Y'all still have scanners, right? Scan those essential documents in and save them to your hard drive, a CD, and a USB stick. Label everything, and give simple directions on where this information can be found to your already mentioned friends and family. Make sure that they understand how to access this information - don't assume that they can figure out how to use a CD drive or a USB.



• Lastly, store it on the web: This is technically one of the ways that I'm advising you to store your essential info, however: do NOT use this as the only way. Please. I'm begging you. There are a myriad of online storage options available to you, including the multi-faceted Gmail, and it's a pretty easy and secure option for making sure your stuff is all in one spot. This particular option is advisable after you've completed the paper trail and electronic backup; be absolutely sure to write down where this information can be found in case you can't help out yourself. Definitely, this is a super backup option, but I'm putting extra emphasis on the "backup" part of that sentence.






Don't put this off





Last week was a wake up call for me, to put it mildly. I don't ever want my loved ones to be put in the frustrating position of scrambling for paperwork for me, and I'm pretty sure you don't either. For more information, I invite you to read the following resources; but please feel free to chime in with your essential paperwork strategies in the comments as well.






• Organize paperwork on your Mac



• One way to digitize and centralize paper documents


• How to organize your financial documents in a filing cabinet






Wendy Boswell is Lifehacker's Weekend Editor and is getting organized this year whether she likes it or not. Subscribe to her feature series Technophilia using the <

The House Kit

Store all this gear in a sealed plastic trash can or containers. It won't cost as much as you think: You probably own most of this stuff already.

A. First aid You could buy the $25 kit from Red Cross. Or you could build your own: bandages, alcohol, cotton balls, antidiarrheals, anti-inflammatories like ibuprofen, and prescription meds.

B. Clothes A full change, including warm outer layers (wool or synthetic) and sturdy shoes, for each person under your roof.

C. Plastic sheeting Fiber-reinforced, laminated polyethylene film, 6 mm thick. You can buy 1,200 square feet of Dura Skrim DS2 for about $100. Or get a tarp — for covering broken windows, roofs.

D. Zip ties Handy when you have to make splints, compression bandages, or tourniquets.

E. Water A gallon per person, per day. For a family of four, that's 12 gallons. If you have the space for that, great. If not, keep as much as you can manage. Have unscented bleach on hand, too — 16 drops in a gallon and you've got potable H₂0. Tea bags make it taste OK.

F. Food Raid the pantry: dehydrated soups, canned tuna and veggies, nuts and candy. Peanut butter is high-calorie and has a long shelf life. You can also buy freeze-dried camping meals.

G. Flashlight We like the Inova X5 — it's water-resistant, aircraft-grade anodized aluminum and uses LEDs. But a cheap drugstore version and some batteries will do just fine.

H. Protective wear Waterproof and cut-resistant Kevlar gloves and N95 face masks.

I. Tools A crowbar to pry debris that might stand between you and a loved one. An adjustable wrench. Screwdrivers. A staple gun. Rope.

J. Matches You're probably not a Boy Scout. Get the kind marked waterproof and windproof and store 'em in a ziplock bag. In another bag, hoard some dryer lint for kindling.

The Go Pack

Keep these items in a backpack that's readily accessible — you know, in case you have to bail at a moment's notice. One bag per person.

K. Radio A cheap transistor set with batteries is fine. Or you could get something that'll pick up TV and NOAA bands and that has a hand crank, like the Eton Grundig FR300 — it comes with a cell phone charging jack and built-in flashlight. If you want to splurge, see page 95.

L. Cash $500 in small bills. ATMs won't work when the power is out, and neither will credit card readers.

M. Documents A copy of your home insurance policy, plus contact numbers, medical insurance card, passport, driver's license, bank records, and photos of family members. (A local map and spare keys may come in handy, too.)

N. Mylar space blanket It's a super-compact means of both keeping warm and reflecting heatstroke-causing rays of sun.

O. Clothes Put spares in a waterproof bag. Remember a hat. Toss in a few basic toiletries, too, like a toothbrush and toilet paper.

P. Food Make room for sports nutrition or candy bars. Nuts and trail mix are good options, too. Include a bottle of water.

Q. Essential medicines Whatever you've been prescribed, plus sunblock and ibuprofen or acetaminophen.

R. Duct tape Well, duh.

S. Signal devices Roadside flares will do. Or you could get Greatland Laser's Rescue Laser Flare — two AA batteries and you have 72 hours of 20-mile-visible brightness. Also try the Fox 40 whistle (115 dB!).

T. Multitool Whether you come down on the Swiss Army side or the Leatherman side of the greatest debate of our time, just have one with you. Make sure it has a can opener, a good knife blade, and both Phillips and flat-head screwdrivers.

The Go Pack

Keep these items in a backpack that's readily accessible — you know, in case you have to bail at a moment's notice. One bag per person.

K. Radio A cheap transistor set with batteries is fine. Or you could get something that'll pick up TV and NOAA bands and that has a hand crank, like the Eton Grundig FR300 — it comes with a cell phone charging jack and built-in flashlight. If you want to splurge, see page 95.

L. Cash $500 in small bills. ATMs won't work when the power is out, and neither will credit card readers.

M. Documents A copy of your home insurance policy, plus contact numbers, medical insurance card, passport, driver's license, bank records, and photos of family members. (A local map and spare keys may come in handy, too.)

N. Mylar space blanket It's a super-compact means of both keeping warm and reflecting heatstroke-causing rays of sun.

O. Clothes Put spares in a waterproof bag. Remember a hat. Toss in a few basic toiletries, too, like a toothbrush and toilet paper.

P. Food Make room for sports nutrition or candy bars. Nuts and trail mix are good options, too. Include a bottle of water.

Q. Essential medicines Whatever you've been prescribed, plus sunblock and ibuprofen or acetaminophen.

R. Duct tape Well, duh.

S. Signal devices Roadside flares will do. Or you could get Greatland Laser's Rescue Laser Flare — two AA batteries and you have 72 hours of 20-mile-visible brightness. Also try the Fox 40 whistle (115 dB!).

T. Multitool Whether you come down on the Swiss Army side or the Leatherman side of the greatest debate of our time, just have one with you. Make sure it has a can opener, a good knife blade, and both Phillips and flat-head screwdrivers.