Preparedness for when

VJsmum

It is really sweet.

But the hair is :rotfl:

We got turfed off a plane in cape town once ( the Captain said "we will turn everything off and then everything back on again to see if it works" at which point I was hoping it didn't work. And it didn't). it was the last flight of the day and immigration had gone home so we had to wait for them to come back in so we could get back into the country. They put us up in a posh hotel and we left 36 hours later. it was fab, a free extra day of holiday. The only trouble is that all our clothes were dirty - i washed my smalls in the hand basin of the hotel and dried them on the heated floor.

The worst of it was that they served the same food on the Sunday morning that we left, that we would have had on Friday night. So we had chicken dinner at 6.30 am and croissants at 4.30 in the afternoon :eek:

thriftwizard

The worst time we had was when we went to Turkey, long before it became a "destination", and the plane we were due to return on developed a problem with its landing gear & had to turn back to England. So we had an 8-hour wait whilst Dan Air (remember them?!) found replacement & got it out to us. Our enterprising young tour reps, in the meantime, found a little restaurant on stilts out on the marshes - the airport having been built on the only flat bit for hundreds of miles - and bussed us all out there for a meal where the staff literally fished the fish out of the water around us and cooked it in front of us.

Only some of it wasn't too well cooked... I will never forget that journey back, though luckily I can't actually remember most of it. The awful, gut-wrenching stomach pains, compounded by sheer terror as we flew through a thunderstorm and at one stage, a ball of lightning passed down the aisle of the plane & people's hair was literally standing on end with static. It was as if I'd somehow fallen into Dante's inferno but I was too far gone to care. Luckily we didn't live too far from the airport; I don't remember the journey home but I do remember that I spent the best part of the next week in bed, almost unable to stagger to the bathroom or keep even a glass of water down.

I think nowadays I'd have been advised to sue! And I now know how serious an infection like that can be; at the time (mid 80s) we shrugged it off as just a tummy bug and I staggered back to work at the end of the week, feeling like a newborn kitten. But at the time it just seemed like one of "those" things, and the price one paid for straying off the beaten track. But the ball lightning was completely surreal...

ivyleaf

Good heavens thriftwizard! If I'd never flown, that story would certainly put me off ever trying it :eek:

Karmacat

Wow, thriftwizard, thats quite something! Thanks for sharing that one

[Deleted User]

The news at lunchtime was running an article on the expected gap in electricity capacity and demand within the next 10 years as nuclear and coal fired generation is phased out in the UK, I wish they'd start giving ideas of the solution to this instead of going round in circles and presenting it as something new every few months. I do so wish too that the 'Not here because it will ruin the view and pull house prices down in the area' lobby were ignored and the greater good of the nation was put before anything else, we can't just let it ride can we?

nuatha

MrsLurcherwalker wrote: »

The news at lunchtime was running an article on the expected gap in electricity capacity and demand within the next 10 years as nuclear and coal fired generation is phased out in the UK, I wish they'd start giving ideas of the solution to this instead of going round in circles and presenting it as something new every few months. I do so wish too that the 'Not here because it will ruin the view and pull house prices down in the area' lobby were ignored and the greater good of the nation was put before anything else, we can't just let it ride can we?

The current government have decided that replacing nuclear is the only option - that the timescale for Chinese built nuclea powwer stations doesn't meet the expected shortfall hasn't been a consideration - they'll blame their predecessors as per usual.
Substantial cuts to subsidies in renewable energy generation have led to a fall in investment and to a number of plans being cut. In November of last year, the Energy Secretary admitted that we'd miss generation treaty targets (should be producing 15% of energy consumption from renewables by 2020, we may be producing 11.5%, though there was a government commitment to produce 30%) and suggested that a further 5% of energy savings could be made by the transport sector (so how will the electric for all the electric cars be generated?).
Its actually feasible to extend the life of some of the coal generators (even though its already been done once) but this risks breaking emmisions treaties. The answer, apparently, is to imprt more energy from abroad - even though current infrastructure is almost at maximum capacity and no major improvement or investment is planned.
It'll be alright on the night, used to be a comedy program, not a politicians "promise."

There is still talk of reducing personal consumption by more efficient equipment, green deals, better insulation and smart meters. At least three of which are under invested and seeing government money disappear.

jk0

Enjoy:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fx8fct4FnY8

Frugalsod

nuatha wrote: »

The current government have decided that replacing nuclear is the only option - that the timescale for Chinese built nuclea powwer stations doesn't meet the expected shortfall hasn't been a consideration - they'll blame their predecessors as per usual.
Substantial cuts to subsidies in renewable energy generation have led to a fall in investment and to a number of plans being cut. In November of last year, the Energy Secretary admitted that we'd miss generation treaty targets (should be producing 15% of energy consumption from renewables by 2020, we may be producing 11.5%, though there was a government commitment to produce 30%) and suggested that a further 5% of energy savings could be made by the transport sector (so how will the electric for all the electric cars be generated?).
Its actually feasible to extend the life of some of the coal generators (even though its already been done once) but this risks breaking emmisions treaties. The answer, apparently, is to imprt more energy from abroad - even though current infrastructure is almost at maximum capacity and no major improvement or investment is planned.
It'll be alright on the night, used to be a comedy program, not a politicians "promise."

There is still talk of reducing personal consumption by more efficient equipment, green deals, better insulation and smart meters. At least three of which are under invested and seeing government money disappear.

While they might blame the previous government, they always do. The bulk of the problems were caused by this government.

I was reading today that solar power will cost 10% less each year from now on. This is a perfect way to cut energy imports, to get energy independence again. Combining with higher efficiency of appliances and it would be achievable. Combining with windmills and we could be energy independent very quickly. Denmark is doing really well on this score.

I was actually looking at the idea of getting a portable vertical axis windmill from Indiegogo. They have a larger 2.5 KW version that would generate enough power for an electric car. That would cover my daily needs for years for what is effectively 6 years up front payment. So lets say I get 10 years use from it and it replaces my current energy bill then I not only cap my energy bill but get 4 years free. If I get 15 years out of it then I could plough the savings into the next windmill and effectively have free electricity for life.

What they need to do is resume the Green energy insulation programs as they have a brilliant rate of return for home users. As you say these are seriously under invested.

Ryanna2599

http://www.naturalnews.com/052749_food_inflation_consumer_goods_prices_Rising.html

If the price of fresh produce is indeed sky rocketing in Canada as per the attached link it makes me concerned that this will impact us in the UK as well. Or whether some food may become in short supply / not be available all the time...

We have such a small garden that we cannot grow much in the way of food, so are totally reliant on shops for our food. I've have preps of a variety of dry products (pasta, rice etc.) and tins (tomatoes, beans etc.).

However, I wonder what fruit / veg do any of you store for emergencies and what form its in - tinned, dried, frozen...

Thanks for any inspiration you can offer me for adding to my preps...

grandma247

The price of fresh foods as well as imported foods has indeed rocketed in Canada. Last week someone on a FB group posted photos of shelf prices. A cauliflower was over 15 dollars. Peppercorns were 18 dollars for a small jar. They have a very short growing season that makes it difficult to help themselves too.