I feel happier this morning. I woke to the knowledge that if something happened to certain essential commodities, I had ready spares.
Since my economic condition always hovers on the edge of failure, this is an ongoing issue. My idea of a good time, shopping-wise, involves turning empty food and fuel containers into full ones. When I’m down to just one of anything I get very twitchy. Hoses fail, connections get chingered up, dogs knock things over and cause spillage (not mentioning any names here, LB), rain and rats invade. What you thought was full can prove itself empty at any moment – and it’s likely to be the worst possible moment. So I always think in terms of redundancy. After several years of doing this, when I get a little money ahead I don’t usually think of Amazon spending sprees. I eye my empty propane bottles.
A few weeks ago I emptied my last fifty-pound flour sack into the two six-gallon buckets I use for ready supply. That left me with fifty pounds of flour which may seem like a lot to you. But all I could think of was that now-empty watertight tub where the sacks go. Last weekend Landlady and M came up for a visit and while it was great to see them, the most joyful sight was the several big sacks of flour and dog food, among other things I’d run low on, that they brought with them.
And yesterday I got a loverly shopping trip to town, from which I returned with supplies of propane and gasoline, potatoes and tobacco and eggs. I also splurged on a few luxuries like bananas (banana bread for everybody!) and chicken. Since I have no good way to keep it, sometimes I almost forget what actual meat tastes like. The boys also approve of that last luxury, quite heartily.
It’s funny how your mind changes on these things, once you get used to it. Once upon a time, if I found myself with “extra” money and was “forced” to spend it on essentials, I’d have felt quite cheated. Now it makes me more cheerful.
Wealth!
