Monday, 27 April 2026

Being prepared

 I just want to make sure you know — and here I'm writing from the UK point of view — that it will be helpful to make some preparations for the effects of the coming oil shock.

There may not be much you can do to increase your resources, but some adjustment to timing and outgoings can help you to be more resilient.

It's worth bearing in mind that reduced outgoings are in effect an income increase, so that's an area to look at, because it takes a while to change ingrained habits.

Then, it's a good idea to have a pantry of spares. It's not realistic for most people to have a huge basement like a home grocery store, but just making sure you have two spares in the cupboard where you normally would have one. This also applies to any meds and supplements that are important to you.

If (as is somewhere between possible and likely) we run into issues about power outages and water treatment plants, it can be prudent to have a power station and some bottled water or a filter system for foraged water. Shop around before making such a purchase; the power stations can almost always be had at a significantly reduced price from Amazon or a store's own sales. The links I've given you are for the ones we personally have at home, that we find very satisfactory, but there's a variety of options so something else may suit you better.

It's a good plan to have some cordless lamps (I have these), and a hot water bottle for each person. Also for the wintertime, electric blanket throws (I have this one and it's really good) mean you can keep warm without having to heat a whole house.

In case of a power outage I have a one ring camping gas stove with a supply of gas canisters. Amazon stocks a selection; there's no point linking you to the sort I have because they are no longer stocked. If you don't know which one to pick, reading the reviews is always helpful. Of course, if you have a wood stove or an open fire that gives you good options, but we don't have either in our new home.

But for everyday cooking I've completely stopped using our regular oven. We now cook just about everything in a multi-cooker air fryer thing. We have this one. Something I love about it is that it's a damn sight easier to clean than a normal oven. These machines are much more economical of fuel than normal ovens, and I find it easy to cook a whole meal (eg something like sausages plus veggies) all in one dish in just twenty minutes. Brilliant. Obviously that wouldn't help you if the power was out, but as it plugs in to a normal household socket you could use the power station if you weren't saving that to keep your freezer running. It's all about what your own priorities would be.

If you have a garden or a balcony, it's a good time of year to start some veggies growing. I like to have lots of herbs; they're tasty and easy to grow, and mean you get both the flavouring and the veggie side of things both in one. 

I'm not quite sure what to expect from this oil shock; we've had several significant national financial crises in the course of my life, and then the pandemic lockdown, and the way I live means I didn't even notice them. But I think the one coming could be quite bad, not least because our national leaders are distracted by their own political problems, do not seem to have our national interests at heart, and are following a puzzling (and I suspect not fully declared) ideology. So it does make sense to be prepared — but not to survive an apocalypse, only to give yourself some thinking time if there are shortages, and to smooth the bumps in the road caused by power outages and similar disruptions.

If these are not things you've given much thought to so far, here are a couple of videos you may find helpful. I recommend both channels.

 
 


I know this second one looks a bit alarmist but a) I think he's not being unrealistic, and b) What he has to say is wise and practical. 


 



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