New Scenario

[MaryN]

Well, 12 months on (depending on which season we would be in - say summer) I would be trying to get as much of the produce I could harvest in, stored, preserved etc., and making a go at getting a second crop into the ground to carry me into Spring and beyond. We have some great trees here, so I would have made efforts to get a good stock of firewood cut and stacked in readiness - heating and cooking would depend on it. My stocks of perishables and those previously available would need to be replaced by sustainable foods, so it would be back to the caveman diet of protein supplemented by whatever I could grow or forage for. We have a good size river around here so fishing would be on the to do list. I think, from everything I know and have learned, we would probably survive, although it would be very hard. We have transport though (horses) and could get ourselves around to see what was available around and about.

Got to say, I would not be particularly hopeful about a large number of people surviving after a big event - even here in the countryside. The last power cut we had (it was planned and leafleted!), my neighbours ran round like headless chickens because they could not make coffee! I fired up our barbecue, boiled a kettle of water and made bacon sandwiches. It was like watching a farce. I would do my best to help, but honestly, I think most of them would be liabilities.

The future for us would obviously depend entirely on how successful our first year after the event was.......