Question for the preppers

[ShiftyOwl]

Hi preppers, I commend you for not being part of the current stockpiling crisis because you have plenty of stock.

Have any of you asked your elderly friends and neighbours if they need anything and are you offering them some of your stock?

This isn’t meant to be an aggressive question but just one that I hope I get a positive response to in terms of us helping one another.

My contribution is that I’ve got a food shop delivery next week and have asked my neighbours if they need me to add anything for them.

Apologies if this has already been asked.

I haven't offered anything yet but will have enough to help my in laws who are in their 70's if they run short as I know they are avoiding social contact. Would help elderly neighbours too. To be honest I will begrudge bailing out people I know who have poo pooed this as "just flu" and "hype" and have been blasé about getting food in. I will begrudge helping people who are still socialising and twatting around with non essential contact until forced by government to do the right thing. I've planned, prepped, offered to take unpaid leave so I can keep my family home for an extended period and to help my place of work not go bust.

It grates a bit that preppers were at first seen as hysterical and will now be viewed as selfish if they don't share their food with all in need.

We prepped over a month ago. Warned our families. Both sets of parents and siblings didn't pay any attention. We bought a few extra bits and bobs incase. My mum now can't get rice or milk. I've got it for her.

One thing I'm surprised by is the lack of chocolate panic buying! All the Easter stuff is full up! Surely people realise they will get sick of eating pasta and sauce and want chocolate at some point?

I don't tell people I prep. It is only now that this ridiculous quirk of mine has paid off. I have offered toilet paper and soap to friends and family, yes.

Gave a decent bag of stuff away to a mum who was upset about not having enough to feed her two children. Couldn’t not. Wouldn’t have slept otherwise. It’s little enough.

Oh how I admire you preppers!!
I will never be caught out again. As soon as this resolves I'm prepping for the next big hit. I'm getting a spare fridge and freezer. I'm clearing space in the loft. I will be prepared.... next time😢
Seriously I've never felt such a failure as a wife and mother. I can't even get paracetamol!!!

I certainly don’t believe that preppers are selfish for not sharing with the unprepared but I can’t help thinking of the older community, and I’m no young chicken myself, who are now struggling because they can’t now go out and get what they need.
My elderly neighbour only 3 weeks ago had her driving licence revoked and she has been really struggling with losing her independence and now isolating. As soon as she lost her licence I offered to help but she has been too proud to accept.
Luckily I managed to collar her son last weekend and he now has my number so if she has any immediate needs he can call me. I work from home and can and will do whatever I can to assist.

My prepping started after a really bad winter, I live in a semi rural location and realised it was just common sense, it sort of spiraled from there. My husband used to take the piss. Not today though!

Glad to hear that some people are sharing, we have what some would consider more loo roll than we need, unfortunately DH has terrible IBS so I’m loathed to share that but if needs must I will. I’m certainly rationing my own use so that DH isn’t left without.

I'm happy to go to the shops for anyone who needs it. Just not sharing my stash

Easter eggs are next on my list! Many of them

You sound wonderful @ikeastash have fun buying all the Easter eggs that no one could give a monkeys about because there are more important things to try to buy. Fill your bunker.

I bought a 25kg bag of bread flour a few weeks ago from a local mill. I've told elderly neighbours if they are short of bread to let me know and I'll put an extra loaf in the morning. I bake nearly every day.

Yup. It's full of all the essentials, which includes gin and chocolate. I'm just bored now and Easter eggs look nice. Noone else appears to want them. Like noone else wanted all the flour and pasta a month ago apparently

@TheGoatIsHere what a lovely gesture, thank you!

I thought I was getting ready for Brexit. My DH used to gently mock me. It doesn't feel right or good to say 'i told you so'. Just relieved I at least don't have to join the current madness in shops. We'll be fine for 4-6 weeks, possibly longer. If I hear of anyone needing anything in my neighborhood I will share.

Ah so really this is a shaming thread for the preppers. You also sound lovely op.

I haven't let anyone know the amount of stuff I have but I put together an entire weekly shop (minus fresh stuff obvs) for my daughter and have given neighbours a few things and I still have enough for about 6 weeks

It really really isn’t a shaming thread but read into it what you want.

Like hell.

I'm not a prepper, never prepped for any kind of 'emergency' in my life. But I did a very large online shop in February. Plenty of stuff, will last me a long time.

I did it, because I'm a single mother and absolutely alone here. If I get sick and need to self-isolate, there won't be a single person who will come to help me. And I need to feed my kid. With online deliveries - I know how ridiculous it gets in this country. I'm a survivor of the 'great snowstorm' a couple of years back. We had a horrible catastrophe of the whole two inches of snow. Two inches, can you imagine, the horror! No deliveries back then. So with a global pandemic there's no way in hell..

So tesco delivered crates with my stuff just as my neighbour was coming back home. She laughed and insinuated that I'm a stupid tin-foil. As why would I do such an odd thing, that's oh so silly. If she'll be sick - she'll just order food then, what's the problem?

So yeah, what's the problem? Surely she can do just that - order online. No slots till the end of April? Tough. Poor lamb.

Yes, in fact I have just this minute pushed a couple of bars of chocolate through my neighbours door as she said how much she was missing it. (very low income and cannot afford treats)

Also being well prepared has enabled me to focus solely on helping the elderly residents in my street.

They ring me every morning to "check in" have a chat and let me know if they need anything.

That's kind @leelulumpkin

I am surprised preppers are sharing already, unless they are really well prepared. I have enough for a couple of weeks lockdown but not more. We haven't had to self isolate yet so we haven't started the stock yet. I see it as part of my parenting duty to be honest - to make sure my family will be ok. No way I am putting anyone else above them.

You're right though, I do have the mental space to reach out to others, which I am doing. I'm very glad I am organised.

Nobody’s needed anything yet and I’m lucky because there are no shortages here and likely it will stay that way.

I would share (within reason) to vulnerable people of various sorts and I’m glad I have extra. Hadn’t predicted it would be so bad that both my young adult children would return from the UK.

The abuse preppers on here were receiving only a few weeks back was astonishing.

Sorry but no. I have been ridiculed as "crazy doomsday prepper" by almost everyone I had told about it. They can all f-off now.

Yes I’ve dropped loo roll, pasta and hand wash to people in need. I don’t have anything left to spare now though.