As the minute click down on New Year ’s Eve 1999 , the arrival of a new millennium was causal agent for both jubilation and concern . For months , cyber - protection experts had warned that the computers controlling everything from bank accounts to nuclear arsenal might be confused by the unfamiliar “ 00 ” year on the calendar . The ensuing hysteria was dubbedY2 K , and for a time , it dominated the news cycle per second .
No such cyber - apocalypse hap : politics and clientele institution spent years and billions of dollar actively preventing any calamities , though there were someisolatedglitches . U.S. spy satellites were treacherous for a few days ; a video shop erroneously calculated that a copy of the 1999 thrillerThe General ’s Daughterwas 100 years delinquent and charged a client $ 91,250 in belated fee . high-risk of all , plenty of citizenry spent just money on Y2 K survival guidebook and assorted tip on how good to weather a tragedy that some internet forumscalled“The End of the World As We Know It , ” or “ TEOTWAWKI . ”
As the 25th anniversary of this non - event arrives , take a look at 10 of the most dramatic art object of advice on enduring a worldwide nuclear meltdown .
Become a Wanderer
You may conceive surviving Y2 K means holing up in a house stocked with supplies and guns — but take the advice doled out by authorKenn Abaygoin a 1999 issuance ofAmerican Survival Guide . “ start out life on the lam as a skunk , ” Abaygo wrote . “ companionship and its government will care for you in nearly every fashion by giving you tax shelter from the violent storm , food and water , medical attending , clothing and encouragement . They involve for nothing in return and rarely ask your name ; almost never do they ask for identification either . They just need to give you a hand and they feel good doing just that . ”
Abaygo also suggested some unlawful solution to food scarcity , noting that both squirrels and pigeons are “ tamed ” and “ many will come right into your hand for a pinpoint of food for thought , and none are expecting to be trapped , snared , or hunted . ”
Know the Seven Enemies of Survival
Y2 K stand for a speculative - font scenario in condition of social collapse for many . In theY2 K Survival Handbook , a clip about the millennium ’s terminal , editorsadviseda dim-witted scheme : Identify what threatens your safety and eliminate it . “ Be fain to confront these hostile element : boredom , pain , thirstiness , fatigue , temperature extreme , hunger , and fear , ” the periodical warn . “ Knowing what you ’ll face will help you gain the endurance battle . ”
Get a Safe House
You might not view your home the best home to stick in an Book of Revelation situation . Survivalist Dave LeetoldCanadian newspaper theStar - Phoenix , that a safe house might be a salutary option . “ You need a dependable house or a survival retreat in a location where the current crisis will not jeopardise you , ” Lee said . “ The easiest way to localize up a dependable family is to coordinate with a friend or family member located between 100 and 150 miles away , preferably in a different context . ” Lee advised choosing a property near water with a single dirt route entrance — and preferably stocked with weapons .
Don’t Flaunt Your Assets
Someone well - prepared for Y2 K might pull those without resources , accordingto S.F. Tomajczyk , author of101 Ways to Survive the Y2 K Crisis . “ If you are not deliberate , you may inadvertently draw in these heroic , and potentially grave , multitude to your home , ” Tomajczyk wrote . “ How ? By lead your source , having lights shining brightly , and by make noise link up with modernistic civilisation . ” Tomajczyk recommended wearing old clothes , not cooking outdoors , and obscuring solar panels .
Warning: Don’t Warn Your Family About Y2K
While it might have been tempting to spread Y2 K hysteria , that was n’t of necessity the best mind . Accordingto Julian Gregori , who editedWhat Will Become of Us ? Counting Down to Y2 K , endeavor to give others a head - up was a sleeveless gesture . “ A word of honor to the wise , ” the book tone , “ do n’t endeavor to warn everyone about Y2K. Do n’t tell everyone what you ’re thinking of doing for Y2 K survival and expect to get verbal boost from them before you pretend . Make your decisions based on the fact and then prepare quietly and systematically . ”
Instead of nagging , the book indicate that you simply invite naysayers over for the vacation and foresee they ’ll then want to bunker down with you once the world implodes .
Sell Your Nice Stuff
What Will Become of Us?takes a cynical scene ofhavingluxury items in the post - Y2 K era . “ deal off unneeded sumptuousness possessions to raise yet extra cash , ” the volume advise . “ You will need cash to purchase the items you see listed in the Appendices . ” ( The leger heel aesculapian supplies and homesteading resources . )
Consider “Alternative Appliances”
With the potential for a major power grid outage , it was crucial to consider how you might get by without some common kitchen conveniences . InThe Y2 K Personal Survival Guide , source Michael S. Hyattprovideda leaning of alternatives . Do n’t have an electric can opener ? Use a manual one instead . No social ? hear a non - electric hand social . No refrigerator ? Hyatt suggest purchasing “ food that does n’t postulate infrigidation . ” We can see why that manual can opener would have come in handy .
Grab a Bucket
Hyatt speculate a Y2 K crisis could also precede a collapse of waste disposal base . In the upshot you had a non - flushing privy , Hyattrecommended“the power shovel method ” for taking care of business . “ It has only four ingredients , ” he write , “ A grip , a toilette , a pail , and a shovel . ” The bucket should be used for urine , while the gutter should be delineate with a traveling bag and the contents buried in the reason . ( Hence the shovel . ) Hyatt also advocate a exhibitor curtain line drive to surround the pail for privateness “ if you want to get fancy . ”
Buy a Water Bed So You Can Drink It
Some Y2Kers feared calculator glitch might lead to aMad Max - styleexistence , with a dearth of essentials . AccordingtoTIME , preppers Bruce and Diane Eckhart of Lisbon , Ohio , purchased a weewee seam — not for sumptuousness , but for easy storage of potable water . “ I hope we do n’t end up drinking my bed , ” girl Danielle , 11 , tell .
Use Toilet Paper as Currency
With banking institutions and ATMs in possible peril , it made sense for the great unwashed to assay out alternate currency . alternatively of gold or Ag , Y2 K prepper Gary Northrecommendedhoarding toilet paper to barter for other essential particular . The advice was listen by the Head kinsfolk of Texas , whoreportedlypurchased C of cast of toilet tissue and piled them throughout the house .
Two - ply might have become the new paper currency , but it was n’t the only suggest answer . Rainer Stahlberg , author ofThe Complete Book of Survival , predictedalcohol , drug , birth control , and womanly hygiene products would all be useful to trade when hard currency run out — or when you require to settle a $ 91,250 late fee forThe General ’s Daughter .
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