NOW I get to feel smug

[lupinfarm]

Have you guys ever seen a kitchen in Paris? I went to Paris with some friends and the kitchens are a) tiny and b) disgusting in regular joe type flats, and c) ill-equipped, and d) tiny. Most singletons don't eat in, they'd rather go out to a cafe or buy something quick to make at home.

My dad lives during the week by himself in his downtown Toronto apartment, and buys groceries only for the week.

 

[On Our own]

Europe is a whole different ball of wax as they say. Shopping daily is the custom there. More emphasis on fresher foods and less overeating and wasting. But, it makes them vulnerable to food supply issues.

People here could have fed themselves. I know they could have, but they were not prepared to make ANY changes in their habits. Not even to go a day or two without eggs. I didn't gouge anyone, but I did not give anything away for free. One woman was quite angry that she had plans to go see avatar this week and the theater was closed. She acted like it was a personal affront.

The bread was almost an act of kindness. DH and I used to sell it to a B&B near us - breakfast cherry date bread and artisan loaves. But, in the end we decided we could not really charge enough to make them profitable. I made some simply because I love the way a house feels when it smells of baking bread.

If I run out for anything when I hear of an impending storm it is milk. But I have powdered and evaporated on hand. It was mostly that people are so unwilling to sacrifice any creature comfort..... These are the people that worry me.

 

[Farmfresh]

First of all congratulations!

This is why we do what we do. Pat yourself on the back and when it is over try to convert your neighbors! The more of us prepared for an emergency the better!

Now to address

What do these people do, eat out every day? Grocery shop each day for one day's worth of food? Do they buy the single rolls of toilet paper and only buy one roll when they run out?

I have two twenty somethings that I raised. One GEEK son lives alone and tends to eat out or buy small amounts of easy to fix foods when he shops. The other one is a military "widow" (her hubby is not dead - just active duty in another state) and she too usually eats out and seldom stocks up the larder. This daughter DOES have a freezer full of chicken that mommy raised for her, so she could make it longer if she HAD to. When hubby comes home she shops like most other Americans a week at a time. They BOTH come to my house to borrow things in an emergency (like TP!!)

I raised them SS, but these new fangled kids have got to learn it on their own. I am pretty sure in a real emergency we would all band together anyway since they both live pretty near.

 

[Wifezilla]

It was mostly that people are so unwilling to sacrifice any creature comfort..... These are the people that worry me.

They have a sense of entitlement. They are the first ones to become "zombies" in an emergency.

 

[Beekissed]

I'm always amazed and amused by the mass scramble for the stores before a winter storm! I sometimes think that folks don't really NEED that stuff but just want to have it before anyone else can strip the shelves....weird!

I went to the store with my mother today~we go about once a month~and was cheerfully listing things that we would not be buying anymore when we start four season gardening this next year. Even down to the spices I plan to dry and blend for my cooking.

Great to have a cellar full of food, a backyard full of fresh meat and the ability and no-how to make more, isn't it?

 

[ohiofarmgirl]

yeah the rush to the store is always kinda funny... i loved the guys on the news that braved the storm in DC b/c they needed beer and TP.

but to the original point - nope most folks arent prepared. its easier NOT to cook and get just bits and bobs of stuff. and lets also remember - what are the unprepared going to make? and with what? if they cant make dinner every nite with electric and a full fridge - what are they gonna do without? how on earth are they going to 'cook' without the microwave!?!??

i think most working folks in city eat breakfast on the way to work, eat lunch out, then they only have to pick something up for dinner. i keep trying to convince a city-friend of mine to quit wasting so much money on their food budget thru planning and *gasp* eating leftovers... i know, i know....shocking.

 

[Mackay]

lots of people shop every couple of days because they are ill equiped to manage the few dollars they have, its called hand to mouth survival, and unfortuantely a reality for many many people.

Where I have worked I have seen it most profoundly amongst the CNA's trying to survive... low paying jobs, kids, , illnesses they can't afford to go to the doctor for, no support help from mates often, their lives are sooo stressed! to hear them talk kinda blows me away, and I often think its because they never really leaned how to make any money... and its not really an afront on CNA's... it just the ecomonic challenges are huge and difficult to deal with incomes that mount to 7 to 8 dollars an hour.....my mom was a CNA in her later years after my dad died.

So, when people are not prepared, stop and think about the real reason. No mom wants to have no food in the house for the kids. Its just a reality for many. There are a huge amount of people out there just really scrimping by.

 

[Beekissed]

Been there and done that, Mackay....for many years. Eventually I learned. There has to be an awakening somewhere or one just struggles until the end. I still struggle but not like before......not anything like before.

You are right....some folks can't learn, some don't want to. Some cannot even see the need to change.

The folks who struggle hand to mouth are the very ones who need to change how they manage. I know~I are one and used to be more of one. I've seen some mighty poor folks using cell phones, buying cigs, beer and canned cat food....it's all about priorities really.

When you have a single income and it's very low, every day is a struggle. Then you have to look around and see why I'm struggling, can I cut out some things so I struggle less, can I make or grow things so I struggle less, can I move to a house where I don't have to pay for city water and sewage, can I use less energy and heat with wood, spend less money on frivolous things, can I save money for emergencies, etc.

I agree, with some it may be that they are unable to be as prepared as others for an emergency. And with some, it's simply how they live their lives and this won't change.

 

[On Our own]

Yesterday I had the chance to speak to people who live ina very urban setting that just got slammed by this storm. The people are entirely unprepared despite the near constant warnings for several days! Also, since many of the stores themselves are fairly small both stores and gas stations ran out of fuel when deliveries could not get through.

People kvetched about how the city wasn't digging them out. I said I remember as a city girl growing up when there was a big snow the whole block would get out with our shovels and we would all shovel out the block. That attitude is gone.........

 

[Beekissed]

Went to Wally World yesterday and folks were quite alarmed that the meat cases, bread and dairy cases were pretty barren.

These seem to be the items that get the most hit by this run on the stores.

The delivery trucks are pretty well delayed by the road conditions on the mountains that ring this area.

When I discuss developing more food independence with others, I usually concentrate on how to produce food with more nutrient values. My mother is a vegatarian, so she probably doesn't see the need for growing proteins....but she would if she could not get adequate fats and proteins that is provided by the legumes and olive oil that she consumes.

A thinking person would look at those empty store shelves and plan to be able to produce these scarcities themselves if at all possible. I know they cannot do this in the cities...but some are trying, at least, when they try having their own chickens.