Preparedness for when

Karmacat

I've only been away a day loving the discussions, and chipping in:

calicocat wrote: »

For me, owning my home was a way to save the inheritance I got from my dad ...I think these days though, things have to be more fluid, as we just don't know what's coming next..!

So now, I guess this means I have options. If I find myself unable to keep up with house repairs etc, or am finding running it physically difficult, or I decide to tour the world before I die.....then I can sell, rent leaving repairs to someone else, and do what I like with the money.

Before, I would have said that buying a bungalow would have been my idea later on. Now i'm not sure, and seem to change my mind on a bi-monthly basis......:D. Still.....keeps me on my toes.

For me, owning my own place has definitely given me options. I've moved out to rent it out, I've had a full house of lodgers, I've split it in two and had one lodger paying more, I've paid a lodger to look after the place when I've gone travelling, I've converted bedrooms to become offices and counselling rooms.

As far as a bungalow is concerned ... in these days of climate change and places flooding that have never been known to flood - no way would I buy a bungalow. Or a ground floor flat (sorry GQ ). I'm probably downsizing to a flat in a few years time, and it will absolutely have to be on the first floor or above.

pineapple wrote: »

With my tin foil hat on I suspect we are not being told just how bad it is going to get in terms of pressure on resources and ensuing conflict.
I think we are at the 'fiddling while Rome burns' stage.
It might sound incredible but I believe our children's children may come to view this period as a time of plenty.

Sadly, pineapple, I agree with this. It's now got bad enough that people are talking about current floods and climate change in the same breath, but I think this is only the beginning. There'll be ups and downs, of course, but I think the general path will be downwards. Seven billion of us, there have been resource wars before of course, but I think as a species we've rarely seen the like of what's coming.

1Tonsil wrote: »

Just a quick visit to wish everyone a Happy New Year. We had to cancel our trip to the UK as my husband was diagnosed with Myeloma and had to begin three cycles of chemo immediately here in Greece where we live. His spine is so fragile because of it that he is not allowed to travel anywhere

Very sorry to hear this news, 1Tonsil, but glad to hear the treatments are going well. All the best to you and your OH.

Frugalsod

jk0 wrote: »

That is a bit of a worry, isn't it? Imagine if we did have a week long power cut, as per that documentary last year? Three days after Radio 4 goes off the air, our nuclear subs assume we have all been wiped out. They launch all their missiles at Russia, who promptly return the favour to us?

Even if nuclear war was averted there would be significant problems nationally if there were a week long power cut. Many new houses are all electric which means they would have no other way to cook. Then there would the huge food waste as freezers thawed. Without electricity there would be no mains water or gas either. Pluses are no phones so after a few days the natives would be getting restless as they were unable to stare at phone screens all day. Petrol would be in very short supply as it is a significant consumer of electricity when being refined from crude oil to gasoline.

Many essential services have their own back up power generators for such occasions, but households can make themselves less dependant on electricity by being more economical with it so they get to the level that they could generate their own needs relatively cheaply.

nuatha

Frugalsod wrote: »

Petrol would be in very short supply as it is a significant consumer of electricity when being refined from crude oil to gasoline.

Even more crucial, I don't know of a petrol forecourt that doesn't rely on electric pumps to sell petrol/diesel. Locally LPG is available without power and I know a couple of small outfits that have gravity petrol/diesel tanks but they aren't large capacity, and wouldn't be available to the public. It wouldn't matter what reserves might already be refined if forecourts can't deliver.

mardatha

Whew! Four pages to catch up on! We were totally fine apart from rain coming in the front windows as Frank hit us from the south head-on. The nearest wee burn to me is a good bit away and lower down, all I get here is drainage off the hills running down the middle of the road out front. The houses on the other side of it are lower than me (smirk). But watching the floods up in Tayside and Peebles was shocking- places that I've known all my life are now flooded for the first time ever.

Frugalsod

nuatha wrote: »

Even more crucial, I don't know of a petrol forecourt that doesn't rely on electric pumps to sell petrol/diesel. Locally LPG is available without power and I know a couple of small outfits that have gravity petrol/diesel tanks but they aren't large capacity, and wouldn't be available to the public. It wouldn't matter what reserves might already be refined if forecourts can't deliver.

Very good point. If you add all the other uses of electricity then there would be even more areas of weakness in our society. When there is a power cut supermarkets stop selling as most tills are electric. Some years ago in London when there was a power cut they simply shut up shop. Crime could increase as no CCTV, and traffic incidents may increase as no speed cameras, GATSO's or traffic lights. Burglaries may drop as no street lights make it harder for burglars to get about.

[Deleted User]

Buy secondhand books for power cuts and make yourself NOT read them when you get home but put them up with your Armageddon cupboard, that way if you have lighting you'll never be bored and won't miss the TV and media access as much. Books are part of prepping too!!!

166million

Hello all, I find myself worrying more about certain scenarios, but they are all more personal than issues of national security or natural disasters. I am slightly concerned about personal end of life issues does anyone prepare for anything like this or health or old age related?

TiredTrophy

166million....you can read kittie 's posts.
She and her late DH had it sorted.

Frugalsod

166million wrote: »

Hello all, I find myself worrying more about certain scenarios, but they are all more personal than issues of national security or natural disasters. I am slightly concerned about personal end of life issues does anyone prepare for anything like this or health or old age related?

That is the purpose of prepping. Prepping for things that are likely to happen and could cause significant problems. Most of us only have a limited budget so prepping for things that are likely to happen is also more cost efficient as well. It is different for us all. All my preps are based round things that are more likely to happen to me. Flooding is not a big risk for me, but other things are. These are what I prep for. The best way to think of it is as insurance. By getting certain items you are insured against that event happening or at least the impact is seriously reduced. Though you would not insure for things that are not necessary. If you were scared of flying and had no passport, no intention of ever travelling far would you need travel insurance? the same applies for aspects of prepping.

Risks from terrorism are seriously overblown so I do not prep for this at all. Also my daily life is very low risk anyway. Getting things in perspective is crucial.

While end of life issues are very real and 100% certain, this is handled very differently by everyone. Though being organised is probably the best thing that you could do. Having your finances up to date and lists of where you have everything including a will, does make things considerably easier for those that follow. If the paperwork is organised then even a sudden death will make everything so much easier for family to deal with. One aunt died suddenly and her finances for her children to deal with were horrendous. It cost a fortune to deal with. Also pick executors carefully. Another family estate was whittled down to barely anything by constant calls by one person to the bank executors who ended up with most of the estate via per hour fees run up dealing with calls about how it is going?

If you have a serious health condition that will make old age very painful then options like Dignitas might be a viable option. So discussing with family what you want done is essential, but have it written down in case they cannot discuss it right now. If you know you have early stage dementia start preparing for that day that you will no longer be able to deal with things.

moneyistooshorttomention

166million wrote: »

Hello all, I find myself worrying more about certain scenarios, but they are all more personal than issues of national security or natural disasters. I am slightly concerned about personal end of life issues does anyone prepare for anything like this or health or old age related?

It's obviously an aspect of prepping and something we will all face eventually.

My own affairs are well in order now - though I don't expect to be at that point for some years to come. But I think its as well to have all paperwork fully up-to-date and in order - so that an executor can readily find all the information they will need. Obviously - an up-to-date Will is important too.

As for what happens to yourself personally - and I confess I'm a bit stuck on that point myself. I used to have a Living Will some years back - ie official document stating no extreme measures to be taken to keep me alive artificially so to say if it came to it. I got stuck as to what to do at the point at which I realised that the medical profession would probably interpret that as meaning "no artificial nutrition or hydration" and might take it as translating into "Its okay to starve Money to death". Followed by reading just how painful it is to die that way.

At that point - I didn't know just what to do to avoid any drugs/operations I wouldn't want imposed on me on the one hand but not leave myself at risk of them starving/dehydrating me to death on the other hand. I confess I haven't been able to work out just how to make sure my absolute EXACT wishes are abided by if it comes to it.

The best thoughts I have on that at present boil down to a very detailed/very personalised list of "You can do this/you cant do that". My cynical nature wonders whether they would read my exact words with the detailed attention that a solicitor or trade union official would though or no. So often I find that people don't use the exact correct word they mean in conversation anyway - or hear me using my carefully chosen exact correct word (ie and think I've used a different word with a slightly different meaning to what I have actually used).

I have even been in a group reading of a play and was having little bets with myself by the end of it as to just how often people would read out a different word to the word that was down there in black and white on paper in front of them. There was loads of using the wrong word going on - despite it being written material.

Hence - concern that most people don't read things as carefully as a solicitor would and that worries me personally.

I'd be interested myself to know what arrangements other people make to ensure that things are EXACTLY as they personally have decided they will be come the time. After all - many women make birthing plans if they are pregnant and specify in detail how they have planned for the birth to be (and I would have been one of them in that position.....) - despite knowing sometimes the "best laid plans" don't work out - but at least the medics would have been told clearly/in writing what my decisions were at all junctures.