The Prepared Home

Keeping occupied without a television (or computer)

I know I would be very lost if I did not have the computer to sit in front of and use for work or for play. Other folk get very lost without their television. What can we do to occupy ourselves if there is no electricity?

Board games

There are lots of these type of games in the shops at around Christmas time and even a few decent ones in the January sales if you need to buy some more. Many people have at least one board game hiding in a cupboard somewhere.

Some are easier to play in dim light than others. Monopoly with all its cards that need to be read in a good light is OK for during the day but depending on how well lit the playing area is, could cause problems at night. Something else you need to think about is how safe are games that involve moving or falling objects around candles. You need games with large easy to see pieces like Scrabble.

Creative activities

There are some things that you can do without looking very closely at them like knitting or crochet. OK you may need to read the pattern on a regular basis and need more light for that but most of the time you can make progress by feeling where you are going.

How about taking a leaf out of Monet's book? Well he had some problems with his eyesight and kept on painting and some of his more original work was influenced by what he saw. Of course he got a bit of surprise when his eyesight problems got better and he realised just how red some of his pictures were. But if he could continue painting when he could not see that well there why don't you get your art materials out and see what you can do with them.

Mind you, if you don't have the materials then you can't do anything. That is where the idea of preparedness is important.

Reading

This can only be done in a good light and if there is anything around worth reading. One way of building up a library cheaply, is searching among the shelves of your local charity shops.

Conversation

They say this is a lost art. Well it does take some practise to communicate effectively so your message gets across without any misunderstanding. It takes some effort but it will be worthwhile in the long run.

Get some sleep

One thing that we forget about the olden days is that life was ordered by the seasons and the hours of daylight. In other words you get up and go to bed with the sun. It saves a lot of trouble trying to cope without electricity. Mind, you may still need to be prepared to avoid any surprises nine months after the power cut.

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