Ive started doing no-phone weekends, using only pre 2006ish tech. Looks like I need to bring that into no power weekends...

No power as in from the grid? Fire up my house generator so we can at the very least have water (from a well), heat (in winter), and preserve the goods in the refrigerator (was once worth a fortune!). Its powerful enough to do everything else though, as if we were on-grid..

A day without power? Not in my house for the necessities stated above. While tent camping, sure, but I mean I still bring my phone and a battery pack to charge it + lights and stuff.. so hmm

My neighbor is installing backup systems so he can run a generator for TV, lights, fridge and hot water, and he has a wood burning stove. His scenario is if there is a major winter storm and the power goes down for a long time. Its a pretty major deal involving an entirely new service connection with new power poles to a new part of his property etc. So the costs of that plus the electrical service disconnect and electrical inspection and permitting...

What's odd is that he ALSO already owns a nice RV that has heat, appliances, generator etc that can run off grid (from propane and gas). So this is all so that he doesn't have to bounce to the RV if the grid goes down for an extended time. His RV is parked next to his house. His daughter keeps her RV parked next to his RV, she just uses his large piece of land for storing it and she stays in it a few times a year when she visits. He actually has the option to use hers as a backup backup also.

My own backup plan is to use the sun for light during the day and to put the food out in the cold to preserve it. Lol. I have no plan for how to run my TV., I guess I'll have to go outside and do something. I used to live in a remote rural area that had over 50 blackouts a year and many multi day power outages and I noticed that the hiking trails still function normally. I own camping stuff like a small stove, warm sleeping bag and warm clothes that work approximately infinitely and are super easy to set up.

A huge thing is not building your happiness on top of shifting sands.

My other friend is a huge "techie" who basically believes in green tech and green growth as The Answer. He has bought a couple full EV vehicles and a massive solar power system for his rooftop. His house was built in the 1950s and has not even been insulated, it's extremely poor for energy efficiency and thermal inertia. His solar system is GRID TIED with no storage besides the car batteries. So it all falls over in a blackout. However the monthly electric bills are less money. The house is still a massive energy hog though, and what he built still has a precarious supply chain. Incidentally his public power utility is hydro powered, so he was not achieving much for the environmental side of the switch to solar, its literally a financial deal.

I bulked up some of the insulation on my house for a few hundred dollars last year and my heating bills dropped 2/3rds in winter and I don't really use the A/C in summer any more, it made such a massive difference to go around and actually fix drafts, gaps and missing insulation zones. I probably spent 1% of what that solar system cost my friend. It wouldn't have been easy to get a contractor to handle this because it was a dozen different disparate problems that involved carefully noticing cold spots, drafts, inspecting different areas etc.

It is interesting how the idea of power outages, what's a necessity, etc just depend on your mental context more than anything.