Hello everyone

I find as the new year gets closer I am more in denial that anything more than a BITR will happen. I feel almost embarassed for anyone to know about my preps (in the family I mean) and I can't seem to concentrate on Y2K anymore.

Could this just be a defence mechanism? I feel as though I have to read over all my printed material (tons) to get myself believing again. I'm not going to though. I have prepped to the max of my ability and perhaps it's just as well to not re-visit the info. I can try to enjoy Christmas. Yet I don't feel any relief either - just kind of numb. I do feel that if it is only a BITR I will be able to live and plan again.

Does anyone else feel this way? Sorry if this sounds stupid.

-- citygirl (citygirl@idirect.com), November 23, 1999

Answers

In a nutshell--NOPE. Y2k has changed my way of thinking about preparedness. Living in Florida, every May I have a long list of things that 'I'm going to get' to get ready for hurricane season. Somehow, I've never gotten all of them, maybe just the bare minimum This year, due to y2k, I was the most prepared I have ever been and it felt good. Thankfully, the Panhandle was spared this year. Disasters can come in any size, shape or form. My thinking has shifted from y2k (Which I believe will NOT be a BITR) to any disaster that may threaten me aand mine. I intend to maintain a preparedness lifestyle and replenish my stock as it is depleted. The other night, DH was running low on Tylenol. I got him 2 boxes from the medicine pantry. (He's kind of a GI that won't admit it). He wanted to know, "This isn't from the y2k stash, is it?" I told him we don't have a y2k stash anymore, it's a regular , how we're going to live from here on out stash. It's real nice not to have to run to the store when your out of something. Just put it on the list as a replacement item for your regular store run.

-- DuffyO (duffyo@mailcity.com), November 23, 1999.

Citygirl. You done good to prepare. Survival means to keep warm ... dry .. well-fed ... protected. If Y2K is a BITR don't worry. Something else will come along to make you glad oyu prepared even if it is something as minor as a (meteor) impact event. (Bit of gallows humor there.) They laughed at Chicken Little. I would too except for that ancient meteor crater 4000 feet wide and 600 feet deep in Arizona. The opposite of prepared is stupid. PS Do you feel stupid about carrying an inflated spare tire and jack in your car if you DID NOT have a flat today??

-- Vlad (Strelok60@yahoo.com), November 23, 1999.

My friend is a chiropractor and had shoulder surgery today. Rehab time = 3 months. Out of work for three months. His disability policy will start after 90 days out of work. Does he have preps? No. Does he wish he did? Yes. We never know when and why we need our own protection. Now, turn on CSPAN and listen to the experts. James Moodt, Interaction CEO and President is speaking and it is BAD NEWS on the international level and this will spill to us.

-- smfdoc (smfdoc@aol.com), November 23, 1999.

Those who watch C-Span tonight will be very glad they have made their personal preperations. They have been giving the big picture and lots of specifics. There will be disruptions, so be glad you are ready.

-- rb (ronbanks_2000@yahoo.com), November 23, 1999.

The only doubt I have is whether I have enough preps. Things look worse all the time to me.

-- anonymous (anonymous@anonymous.com), November 23, 1999.

Citygirl,

You are not alone. Many of us are just tired of trying to anticipate all the things that might go haywire. Take some time off from prepping. Just be sure you have some backup heat. If I recall, you are a bit north of me and probably getting some colder temps.

For myself, I don't ever plan to get to the place where we are not ready for a disruption in basic services again. I have always believed that preparedness was a good thing, but it took the y2k thing to overcome my inertia.

I hope none of us gets hit bad with outages, but chances are that some of us will see some trouble. It's always good to have something to tide you over. I had an unexpected job change - lost my job. The planning we did took the anxiety out of the change. Actually made it a bit of a vacation.

Don't feel bad. You are probably in a better position than you have been in in year.

regards,

gene

-- gene (ekbaker@essex1.com), November 23, 1999.

I highly recommend starting to use your preps, making them a part of your everyday life, now. For example, I try to have a meal a day from my de-hydrated food, and always try to add something a little different for extra flavoring. (That TVP -- meat substitute -- isn't bad at all.)

Doing this sort of thing has two advantages: it prevents you from feeling that your preps are only of value if there are serious disruptions; it allows you to migrate into using your preps, thus if you really should need to fall back on them, you won't have to be fumbling.

37 days.

-- Jack (jsprat@eld.~net), November 24, 1999.

Gene, Citygirl and I are (I believe) in the same city. Weirdly mild weather, actually, for this time of year. I'm nursing a faint hope that our y2k winter will stay this way. Fat chance.

Citygirl, I took delivery of some kero today, and was told that *lots* of local households are ordering this winter, to power spaceheaters. Email me at ag3@interlog.com and I'll give you the details. We can compare No Frills.

I'm suffering a certain 'disconnect' effect also.

-- silver ion (formerlyPH@this.forum), November 24, 1999.

We have a close relative in the late stages of cancer. An old nurse friend of mine has helped me see some unbelievable denial in others as a very effective coping mechanism.

citygirl,

Yes, it can just be a defense mechanism. You are aware of it. Don't give yourself a hard time, it is probably performing a needed function for you.

Best of luck to you.

-- flora (***@__._), November 24, 1999.

Citygirl,

I too am "losing steam" when it comes to prepping. Until this last month, nothing seemed like enough, and everytime I was out I picked up "just a little bit more". Lately, I just havent felt the urge. It may be that I have finally reached my comfort level, and am satisfied that I have surpassed my original goal. Regarding the embarrassment about prepping, I feel the same way many times. Undoubtedly this is because everything is so "rosy" right now, and we are starting to doubt our own ability to make an accurate assessment of the Y2K situation. But that is the real crux of Y2K - it is so very difficult to make an accurate assessment. If you stand back and look this with an out of the box perspective, why would preps look foolish? Is buying auto insurance foolish? After paying your premiums for a year, if you dont collect, do you get any of your money back? Y2K preps are also a form of insurance, but for the most part, if you dont need to collect on this insurance, youll still most of your investment back. Most everything youve done will still be of value. Try to find auto insurance that provides a deal like that. When it comes right down to it, no one really knows what will happen. I would much rather do everything I can to be "ready", so that I will have no regrets later (i.e. I could have done something and didn't). The way I see it, it is better to be in a position of having and not needing than the other way around. To me, the foolish ones are those who are taking a chance that Y2K will be business as usual. Regardless of the outcome, I think prepping is (was?) the right and responsible thing to do.

Chin up! e.m.

-- Eyell Makedo (make_do@hotmail.com), November 24, 1999.

Wow, Citygirl! I was just contemplating the same subject earlier today. I don't know if you can relate to this example or not, but it's like the 7th month of pregnancy(sorry men) - you're tired of being pregnant, but the baby isn't ready to be born yet. You begin to wonder why can't I have this kid now! Why do I have to WAIT another two months? I couldn't answer it then, and I can't answer it now. I just know that I feel the same way - almost empty, burned out, ready for something, anything! Just get it over with!

-- Midnightmom (myhouse@bigfoot.com), November 24, 1999.

citygirl -- as others have said/implied, its' "normal". The important thing is you have already prepped to the maximum of your ability. So, kick back and enjoy the show (life, whatever it brings).

Jack -- such a great suggestion. We're doing the same, though we, uh, skipped the TVP ourselves ....

-- BigDog (BigDog@duffer.com), November 24, 1999.

Hello everyone

Thank you so much for all your kind replies. You have made me feel much better. It always helps to know other people feel the same way! The first thing I took care of was the heat. I have a kerosun with lots of kerosene stored. I have lots of food and a big berkey water filter. I guess I'm as ready for an emergency as it is possible to be in a big city.

Yes - I'm in a northern city with unusually mild weather! Would it could stay that way for awhile!

You are all so very kind. I look upon all your replies with gratitude and a kind of awe at how people can communicate so closely over the internet!

Use my preps? USE MY PREPS?! Now that is something I have been so afraid to do! I won't even light a candle anymore for fear I might need it next year and regret it! Shows you how neurotic I have become!

Thanks again everyone!

-- citygirl (citygirl@idirect.com), November 24, 1999.

I have to echo what anonymous said. My main doubts about my preps are that they aren't enough.

Also sort of been afraid of using preps for the same reason citygirl mentioned. Well, except the ramen. Been hitting that pretty hard. But it's also been the one thing cheap enough that I could afford to stock up on, so I have a lot of it. (Hmm, which kind should we have tonight?)

-- winter wondering (winterwondring@yahoo.com), November 24, 1999.

I did see the C-Span program last night. A panel of experts at George Washington University. Special emphasis on the embedded chip problem by Dr. Paula Gordon. It lit my fire again. The problem promises to be a disaster lasting more than a few months. I continue to think one will be happy with supplies for a long, long time. They can always be shared or given away if it turns out they are not needed. I have yet to see an answer as to how the embedded chip problem will be fixed. I do see things like - chips over three years old are no longer in production, chips produced today cant be used to replace the old ones because the dont fit on the old boards and are programmed differently. SEE www.gwu.edu - then do a search for Paula Gordon. Also, last nights program will probably be available on c-span.org

-- RickE (vrevans@bigfoot.com), November 24, 1999.

In addition to all the wonderful advice that has already been given, I would recommend seeking out some of the Y2K preppers in your area. Give your Geographic region and have people send e-mail to you, then set up a dinner meeting at a restaurant.

I have been doing that by holding dinner meetings in the Boston area for the last 7 months or so. It is really great to meet some of the posters off of TB2000 and be able to talk to them face to face and share stories, questions, fears. It really helps you to talk to people that think the same way you do without fear of outbursts or ridicule. We are getting ready to have a pot luck and a Christmas party for the group. (no reason to just wait for the rollover without some fun)

-- ExCop (yinadral@juno.com), November 24, 1999.

I haven't been able to get this forum for several days...it just wouldn't come up on my screen. But today here it is!

And I am amazed...this is the first entry that I went to because of the title: "Is anyone having doubts about their preps?" It caught my eye because these last few days, I've found myself thinking "Well, it propably won't be anything....we'll just go on and one, and won't ever realize anything substantial....we'll never know when it's over, cause we won't know when it began...we'll hear of this accident or that problem, but we'll be assured that it wasn't y2k related..." on and on....I'm finding myself feeling depressed, sad, scared.

But also I feel very proud for prepping as much as we have. We've put together a very complete first aid kit (which we've been talking about doing for years!), and installed a big water catchment tank in the back yard (which we also have planned for years....every time when we have a month without rain, and our water bill goes sky high!, we always wish we had a full tank of rain water to draw from, insteading of watering the garden with county water).

But the amazing thing is that this morning I woke up thinking, "Y2K is like being pregnant! The last few weeks, you're kind of tired of getting ready, tired of being pregnant, and you think you're ready, but there's the nagging feeling that it isn't enough, and you begin to worry about everything going OK, and you can't really plan anything for the next few weeks, because you don't know for sure when the event will actually take place, and to what extent, and how everyone will feel afterward..."

It's funny because I spent 30 minutes thinking about all this, and in my mind thinking what a great article I could write, and then I turn on the computer, pick this thread, and there are two of you who make the comment that it's like being pregnant!

Anyway, I heard from several people that it was announced on the radio a couple days ago that the National Guard will be on stand by in our entire state at the end of Dec.

And Big Dog...go ahead and try TVP! Use it like you would ground beef, only season it more. It can be very good!

Thank you all for sharing your feelings, and how you're coping...I think it really helps all of us to know that we're not alone!

-- Margo (margos@bigisland.com), November 24, 1999.

I have the same problem. I think it's a normal consequence of being in the minority and being pelted with anti-prep propaganda. Since I'm done it's no biggie. I still try to get others to wake up. I think the "BITR residual" haunts me a little.

I had a curious situation in which (your not gonna believe this one) on one of my last trips to Sam's club, a collapsed in a seizure right in the medicine isle. (Was this due to y2k?) No big deal it turns out except I had to forfeit the old driver's license for a few months. It gets even wierder: a GI relative passed away and I took possession of her years supply of Dilantin thinking I would find a GI in need. Go figure it would be me two weeks later. I was essentially done prepping when all this took place. If not, I would climb the walls thinking about all the things I had to do but couldn't. My wife shares my views of the risk in spirit but without the passion. (I snuck more bags of rice and key other things than she knows about.) If anybody knows who I am, mum's the word.

-- Dave (aaa@aaa.com), November 24, 1999.

Hi Citygirl,

Every day.

I think part of it is that I know that I'm ready for a LOT of short term problems.

I also calculated that I now have enough diapers for my son for at least 6 months and probably longer. Yeah, these were expensive, but unless he potty-trains in record time, I know I'll use them.

When I get tired, I try to remind myself that there is no way that I have enough water, or could store enough, for more than a month.

My mother-in-law, who would be a total DGI except for the drought in her area this past summer and a conversation with an Ivy League University CIO, recently pointed out that she is using parmalat and rice milk as preps to use with cereal. It's only the second Y2K related conversation we've ever had, but she can see all the cans of stuff that we have in our basement.

-- nothere nothere (notherethere@hotmail.com), November 24, 1999.

Deja Vu all over again! I was having the same thoughts too. I think the gov.spindocs played a dirty little trick of osmosis on me! The more you hear "...we'll be ready..." and "...just a bump in the road..." and "...of course not here in the USA, but in other countries..." that complacency kinda grows on you.

However, thanks to GN, TB2K, and my hopelessly cynical eye on things, I have recovered a little bit of the urgency I used to have. The complacency must have come from surpassing my prep goals earlier this spring. I continued prepping in the self-defense and food categories, but tapered off in late summer. Now I feel that nagging urgency all over again.

It must be 'cause now I look at my desk calendar and see Dec 1999 with the 31st highlighted in pink.

Over this long holiday weekend, I'm doing lots of thing on my last minute checklist: My entire water storage will be replaced completely. I'm moving some of my food storage into more accessible areas like the kitchen cabinets. My self-defense preps are getting final checks and cleanings, shoot a few hundred rounds Saturday. Half my mags will be loaded to full -1(they'll get rotated with the other half every 60 days). I still need to get a few spare parts for the Glocks (not that I think I'll ever need them...CYA). A few more cans of Kero won't hurt. Another deep cycle 12v battery. New tires for the truck, and a couple cases motor oil when I get to Sams Club. One thing I need is good sunglasses, my eyes hurt in bright sun, so I'm getting a couple spare pairs of Ray-Bans. MORE BATTERIES in AA & D.

Two really important things to me: I'm printing hard copies of all my prep info, texts, faq's, weapon manuals, recipes, prep inventory, etc, and I'm doing one last good inventory to make sure everything is operational.

Wow, I'm out of breath, but there's a weight off my shoulders...

-- Powder (powder@keg.com), November 24, 1999.

I'm not the least worried about my preparations...except to question whether or not they are enough! There are too many disasters out there waiting to happen...earthquakes, fires, floods, tsunamis, hurricanes, tornados, [insert least favorite politician here] elected, solar flares, economic downturn, Y2K, etc.

But I store what we use...and am willing to give to those in need.

-- Mad Monk (madmonk@hawaiian.net), November 24, 1999.

One additional note regarding TVP (besides agreeing that you should definitely add seasoning to it): be sure and treat it in the same manner as you would meat, once it has been reconstituted. Specifically, refrigerate any left over.

-- Jack (jsprat@eld.~net), November 24, 1999.

I'm outta money, but have some goals still. Maybe some might inspire you, so I'll jot them down... 1. Pantry. I have some immediate 7-day storm rations that I bought for my household and incase a neighbor/family member is in need. I need to put any other stuff away so that if I am burglarized I will still have a few rations for my family.

2. I need to see who has rust colored drives in my neighborhood so I know where the wells are (I rent, and have not been here long enough to know this already).

3. I need to continue my web studies, cause I may not have power here soon. I need to read up on edible plants in mid-atlantic region. Been reading on cooking in a fireplace. Reading up on different social and political views that I don't have exposure to, so I can best anticipate other people's behaviors and adjust my plans for safety. I've studied stuff on water purification/sources. Printing out some web pages on skills, recipes, food storage, etc.

4. Focusing on savoring each day, and thanking God for these blessings, such as chatting with you guys; rather than taking it for granted. Heck, I could be hit by a bus tomorrow, so carpe diem is long overdue.

5. Observing the persons around me.

6. Filling the air in my car and bicycle tires.

7. Collecting pine cones. I dip them in parrafin for fire starters.

8. Return some of the fuses I bought that are the wrong type. I have extra fuses incase we get dirty power.

9. Weatherise my windows. Most will be thick coverings, rather than that thin plastic.

10. Sort through my belongings. Donate clothes. Trash some clutter. Secure personal documents. Pack bag for any spontaneous traveling.

-- Hokie (nn@va.com), November 26, 1999.

The dumbest thing--I spend too much time on the forum at the expense of getting preps done. The irony is that if I hadn't discovered the forum, I would not have done anything. You may want to do more but consider all that you have already done--I'll bet you have done more than 99.99% of the general population.

-- Lars (lars@indy.net), November 27, 1999.