START SURVIVAL PLANNING NOW!

ONLY DAYS LEFT TO Y2K 1/3

NEWT Gingrich predicted that December 31, 1999, "may well be the most interesting New Year's Eve of our lives." Newsweek suggests we celebrate the coming of the millennium "with candlelight and a mattress stuffed with pictures of dead presidents" (greenbacks). Great advice, if you can afford the latter. But there's no doubt that it is time to get serious about Y2K. Even if it does not turn out to be a mega disaster, it will unquestionably interfere with our lives considerably.

My best guess is that the first month or so of next year could indeed be packed with surprise disruptions of food supplies, water, power, telephones, you name it. The disruptions are (we hope) likely to taper off as the year progresses: but those first few months could prove pretty dicey. So it is wise to be ready to rough it for at least three months, maybe more. We can't control the circumstances, but we can control much of the reaction.

You don't have to be wealthy to survive the looming crisis. But you do have to be prepared. Your actions must not be random or ignorant. You should have a survival plan: and don't put that off till the last minute. It is basic commonsense to start preparing for a stretch of simple, cheap living. Make it a priority. If you don't have time to prepare now, will you have the time (or opportunity) to prepare after Y2K is upon us?

As there is little point in ploughing the same ground twice, I am going to repeat much of the advice (updated) I gave in an informal survival manual I published in July, 1992, when it seemed that revolution was about to swamp SA. So here we go: some early, prudent steps to take between now and the threatened Computer Doomsday:

FOOD STOCKPILING has become a prominent issue since both the US Red Cross and Britain's Y2K survival group, Action 2000, have advised householders to store additional food. The Red Cross advised that a two week surplus be taken in, enough to feed every member of the family, including the extended family - dogs, cats, birds. Items should be stored ahead of time and ready for use should there be predicted disruptions. Such precautions are not only sensible but could represent a good investment. For there's one thing you can count on. Prices are not about to fall.

Calculations: The approach advocated is to go to your pantry and take a good look at the canned foods and bottled goods you normally buy and consume. Quantities? Base your calculations on the principle that healthy individuals older than four years require 1 500 calories (6 300 kilojoules) per day, 35g of protein and a minimum of one litre of drinking water a day. That excludes pregnant or breastfeeding mothers.

Recommended items:

PROTEIN: Canned corned beef, luncheon meats, stews, sausages, vienna sausages, ham, canned soup, beef or chicken stock. Salami hung up whole and boerewors can last for many months.

FISH: Canned Tuna, pilchards, sardines, salmon. DAIRY: Hard cheese, long-life milk, canned, evaporated or condensed milk. Include extra supplies - and plenty of them, especially milk products - if there are infants or small children in the house. If there is need for this, store ample supplies of baby food.

CARBOHYDRATES: Provita, cream crackers, crisp-bread, salty or sweet biscuits, prepared toast. Cereals, especially the nutritious meuslis. Spaghetti, pasta, noodles, mealie meal, flour (don't forget the yeast).

VEGETABLES: Canned or dried peas and beans, canned corn, baked beans. Canned, dehydrated or freeze-dried tomatoes, carrots, cabbage, cauliflower, onion, garlic. Such energy-rich and long lasting foods as lentils and dried peas. If possible, grow as many veggies as you can in your own garden. Lay in stocks of seed.

FATS AND OILS: Cooking oil, peanut butter.

BEVERAGES: Tea, instant coffee, cocoa, Horlicks, canned or bottled juices.

FRUIT: Canned peaches, pears, apricots, pineapple.

GENERAL: Salt, sugar, jams, honey, syrup, meat or fish paste, dried fruit such as raisins and sultanas, which provide both variety and energy. Nuts of all kinds. For flour, sugar, rice and pasta the best storage system is in canning jars with tight fitting caps. Put jars in microwave for one minute before filling. This will keep contents usable for six to 12 months.

Have a few goodies in stock as an occasional morale booster: chocolate bars for pleasure and energy, fruit drops to keep thirst at bay; chewing gum for freshness. Pickles, cucumbers, onions and mixtures take up little space and add zest to a monotonous diet. Beware anything too salty or thirst-creating. Allow for special diets for small children, the elderly, diabetic or heart sufferers. If there is illness in the house, store necessary invalid food supplies. Multivitamin tablets. Glucose sweets are an important energy supplement.

Spend one weekend eating only food from your Year 2000 stocks. That should provide some basic information on what you may need. Do you normally open cans with an electric opener? A lot of good that stored food will be if you can't find a can opener!

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