Lately I’ve been watching ‘Alone’ on Netflix. ‘Alone’ is a show where 10 contestants got shipped off to some godforsaken and very remote area, then are left on their own until all but one of them taps out. The winner gets $500,000.

Now, before Hippo runs out and volunteers as tribute

it’s important to note that the people of the show are all trained in survival, some of whom make their living at nothing more than being a survivalist. To now surprise, these people really need $500,000, because that is not a lucrative gig. Thank you, Grizzly Adams, but I have access to papers and matches; I do not need to know how to start fires. Here’s $5 anyway.

In the wilderness, however, these people are gods. They build their own shelters, from scratch. They hunt, (largely unsuccessfully), they fish, (also without a lot of success, but more than the hunting), they gather. They fight boredom and their own thoughts. They express their thoughts on camera, a= lot, which is the weakest part of the show. I am here for the survival stuff; I have no interest in your issues with Daddy. Please go hunt something and stop talking.

Anyway, for our purposes, all contestants are also limited to 10 items of their own choosing. Today, you’ll be drafting, one item at a time, your own 10, (or until you get bored), survival items for when you find yourself in a remote area. In ‘Alone’ there are certain things you can’t bring, like matches, or a gun. Not today. If it makes sense to you to bring a bottle of perfume to a remote island, (It does not. I can’t emphasize enough that if you find yourself in a survival situation please do not rely on a bottle of perfume), you go ahead and draft it

Once an item is drafted its gone for good. For that reason, be very specific. If you take a rifle, for instance, a shotgun or pistol would still be on the board.

With the first pick, I’m taking a box of 500 matches.