Something I have noticed about myself as I get older is that I have become more cautious and more prepared. Instead of just replacing things when they wear out or replenishing them when they run out, I now tend to stock up. I often end up with two or three backups of things I use regularly. In some cases, I suspect I could even survive a shortage without even noticing the store shelves have gone empty.

It is mostly small stuff, so I am not wasting large amounts of money, but it has definitely become a habit. I like the idea of never fully running out of anything. I think part of it comes from a fear that when I do run out, that will be the exact moment the world decides to have a massive shortage of whatever it is I need.

So what I tend to do is top things up before they are gone, which means I am always sitting on extra supplies. The problem is, I sometimes forget where I put the backups, or I forget that I already bought them, and then I end up buying even more. At this point, I am not entirely sure if I am being prepared or just slowly building my own mini warehouse without realising it.

That is probably just part of getting older as well, the memory is not quite what it used to be. Although to be fair, it is hard to remember what you have when you have hidden it from yourself in three different places.

That said, I do not really mind it. There is something quite reassuring about knowing you have what you need on hand. It takes a bit of stress out of things, even if it does mean you occasionally discover you have six liters of fish sauce you only remember buying one of.

This is exactly why they have Costco's in the US, along with other countries, and millions use it daily. Buying in bulk, especially things you always use, costs less and you make less trips.

For important items in my life, certain foods, medicines, equipment, tools, etc., etc., I've always strictly adhered to the rule: "One in none. Two is one. Three is OK.

I never wait to run out of something. Not a matter of age for me. I've been this way since my 20s.

7 minutes ago, FolkGuitar said:

For important items in my life, certain foods, medicines, equipment, tools, etc., etc., I've always strictly adhered to the rule: "One in none. Two is one. Three is OK.

I never wait to run out of something. Not a matter of age for me. I've been this way since my 20s.

Any other pertinent life hacks you're willing to share

When anyone goes back to the states, I ask for roller ball pens, decent cotton socks, and short pants with zippered pockets.

I’m down to about two pens and two pairs of shorts and socks need replacing.

So I’m grateful to have someone on the ground there right now filling up a shoe box to top me up

13 minutes ago, Prubangboy said:

I ask for roller ball pens

Get yourself a Pentel rollerball and then you can buy refills at any B2S store.

23 minutes ago, FolkGuitar said:

For important items in my life, certain foods, medicines, equipment, tools, etc., etc., I've always strictly adhered to the rule: "One in none. Two is one. Three is OK.

I never wait to run out of something. Not a matter of age for me. I've been this way since my 20s.

Agreed - Important medication - 4 months backup (thats also because I sometimes travel away and can and have been stuck overseas for longer than anticipated).

1 hour ago, Harry Tuchas said:

Something I have noticed about myself as I get older is that I have become more cautious and more prepared. Instead of just replacing things when they wear out or replenishing them when they run out, I now tend to stock up. I often end up with two or three backups of things I use regularly. In some cases, I suspect I could even survive a shortage without even noticing the store shelves have gone empty.

It is mostly small stuff, so I am not wasting large amounts of money, but it has definitely become a habit. I like the idea of never fully running out of anything. I think part of it comes from a fear that when I do run out, that will be the exact moment the world decides to have a massive shortage of whatever it is I need.

So what I tend to do is top things up before they are gone, which means I am always sitting on extra supplies. The problem is, I sometimes forget where I put the backups, or I forget that I already bought them, and then I end up buying even more. At this point, I am not entirely sure if I am being prepared or just slowly building my own mini warehouse without realising it.

That is probably just part of getting older as well, the memory is not quite what it used to be. Although to be fair, it is hard to remember what you have when you have hidden it from yourself in three different places.

That said, I do not really mind it. There is something quite reassuring about knowing you have what you need on hand. It takes a bit of stress out of things, even if it does mean you occasionally discover you have six liters of fish sauce you only remember buying one of.

I'm often reluctant to use any one remaining item, until I have a back up in place 😊

16 minutes ago, PhilipHabib said:

Any other pertinent life hacks you're willing to share

As soon as Covid hit - and no the Gulf Crisis - I've stocked up on loo roll...

... rolls and rolls of it...

I'm British you see - thats just what we do at the first sign of negative news - a nation of loo-roll hoarders !!...

4 minutes ago, VocalNeal said:

Get yourself a Pentel rollerball and then you can buy refills at any B2S store.

Thanks, you have sent me free.

This is this board at its best.

^ While not rollerball (I don't think) the 0.5 pens , three to a packet, from Mr. DIY write quite well but don't carry them in your pocket.

I usually have at least a month's supply of food and water in the house, have two gas canisters that I rotate/replace when empty so always have one full in reserve, plus diesel fuel tank in pickup truck is never less than 75% full. I haven't quite got to the point of stockpiling MREs, canned everything, ammo just yet and going full-on prepper style... but the world is becoming more dangerous and unstable all the time, and it seems that this "just in time supply chain" we are used to is very vulnerable to shocks.

However, I could happily last a month without much drama... hopefully any crisis other than rising prices or total society collapse doesn't last much longer than that. Although, going full-on solar might be a good idea at some point.

17 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

As soon as Covid hit - and no the Gulf Crisis - I've stocked up on loo roll...

... rolls and rolls of it...

I'm British you see - thats just what we do at the first sign of negative news - a nation of loo-roll hoarders !!...

I was in Thailand, the land of the bum gun.

While there were people in Australia fighting in the aisles over the last toilet rolls, I was taking photos of well-stocked shelves in Big C to send to my friends.

I was also posting them Covid test kits, which were $2 here and up to $50 in Oz.

In Thailand, I am a Vegemite hoarder.

35 minutes ago, Lacessit said:

I was in Thailand, the land of the bum gun.

While there were people in Australia fighting in the aisles over the last toilet rolls, I was taking photos of well-stocked shelves in Big C to send to my friends.

I was also posting them Covid test kits, which were $2 here and up to $50 in Oz.

In Thailand, I am a Vegemite hoarder.

Not surprised you just hoard it - nobody wants to actually eat that crap. Marmite rules! 555

Having food stocks , cleaning supplies , personal hygiene items is better

than money in the bank ,I have a freezer full of stuff , lots of canned goods,

and always buy my vegetables in bulk , 10 kg Potatoes and Onions, for a fixed

3 month bank account I get .75 % , not even 1 % and they even take tax off that,

the price of everything is going up now with this Diesel crisis ,time to stock up

on your favorites',price rises and shortages to look forward to. Trump 🤡 did this....

regards worgeordie

1 hour ago, VocalNeal said:

Get yourself a Pentel rollerball and then you can buy refills at any B2S store.

1 hour ago, VocalNeal said:

^ While not rollerball (I don't think) the 0.5 pens , three to a packet, from Mr. DIY write quite well but don't carry them in your pocket.

He doesn't mention it, but he might be Left-handed. Lefties favor the gel roller ball pen like Pentel because they don't smear when a Lefty writes with it. Ordinary ball-point pens smear when a Lefty writes more than a few sentences.
My school papers always had a blue tinge to them. Then I found Pentel. 😊

1 hour ago, Prubangboy said:

When anyone goes back to the states, I ask for roller ball pens

I use a ballpoint pen model available in Thailand called the Uni Jetstream 101, which is made by Mitsubishi. You can usually find them on Lazada or Shopee for around ฿15 per pen.

What I really like about them is the hybrid fast drying ink. Unlike traditional oil based ink, it dries almost instantly on contact with paper, making smudging nearly impossible. I am not a fan of rollerball pens because they tend to use much thicker purely oil based ink that takes much longer to dry. They do feel smooth when writing, but the Jetstream pens are quite pleasant to use without the downside of slow drying.

I used to like the Pilot G 2 rollerballs, which are also available online in Thailand for about ฿40 (or slightly less per pen) if you really feel you must have a rollerball. However, the slow drying ink eventually put me off them.

In Asia, tip sizes are not always labeled as medium or fine, so I learned that 0.70 corresponds to a medium tip, which suits me well. I avoid fine 0.50 tips because they can dig into the paper.

If you have not tried them yet, I would recommend giving the Uni Jetstream pens a go. They write well, offer great value for money, and being retractable means no caps to lose. They are also less likely to leak in your pocket since the tip is only exposed when you click it out.

1 hour ago, richard_smith237 said:

I'm British you see - thats just what we do at the first sign of negative news - a nation of loo-roll hoarders !!...

I never heard it called loo-roll before. Do they also call it bog-roll in the UK at times?

5 minutes ago, Harry Tuchas said:

I use a ballpoint pen model available in Thailand called the Uni Jetstream 101, which is made by Mitsubishi. You can usually find them on Lazada or Shopee for around ฿15 per pen.

What I really like about them is the hybrid fast drying ink. Unlike traditional oil based ink, it dries almost instantly on contact with paper, making smudging nearly impossible. I am not a fan of rollerball pens because they tend to use much thicker purely oil based ink that takes much longer to dry. They do feel smooth when writing, but the Jetstream pens are quite pleasant to use without the downside of slow drying.

I used to like the Pilot G 2 rollerballs, which are also available online in Thailand for about ฿40 (or slightly less per pen) if you really feel you must have a rollerball. However, the slow drying ink eventually put me off them.

In Asia, tip sizes are not always labeled as medium or fine, so I learned that 0.70 corresponds to a medium tip, which suits me well. I avoid fine 0.50 tips because they can dig into the paper.

If you have not tried them yet, I would recommend giving the Uni Jetstream pens a go. They write well, offer great value for money, and being retractable means no caps to lose. They are also less likely to leak in your pocket since the tip is only exposed when you click it out.

A link to the specific model that you are recommending would help!

Searching for just "Uni Jetstream 101" gives hundreds of very variable results!

2 minutes ago, scottiejohn said:

A link to the specific model that you are recommending would help!

Searching for just "Uni Jetstream 101" gives hundreds of very variable results!

Here is the link to the last Uni Jetstream 101 ones I bought from a shop called Mumu Stationary on Shopee.

https://shopee.co.th/product/587464259/19382523733

In the screenshot from their product page, the pens are pictured on the right and come in black, blue and red. They have a nice rubberized grip as well. The ones on the left are pencils I think.

9 minutes ago, Harry Tuchas said:

Here is the link

Thanks!

28 minutes ago, FolkGuitar said:

Ordinary ball-point pens smear when a Lefty writes more than a few sentences.
My school papers always had a blue tinge to them.

Try the Uni Jetstream 101 ones I mentioned. Ink dries instantly. No more smudges and smears and no more ink covered knuckles, if you are a lefty.

8 minutes ago, scottiejohn said:

Thanks!

My pleasure. 😇

34 minutes ago, FolkGuitar said:

He doesn't mention it, but he might be Left-handed. Lefties favor the gel roller ball pen like Pentel because they don't smear when a Lefty writes with it. Ordinary ball-point pens smear when a Lefty writes more than a few sentences.
My school papers always had a blue tinge to them. Then I found Pentel. 😊

Just wrote "how now brown cow" with a Mr DIY pen and no smudge.

Three in a packet (sic) blue/black/red.

2 hours ago, Harry Tuchas said:

I use a ballpoint pen model available in Thailand called the Uni Jetstream 101, which is made by Mitsubishi. You can usually find them on Lazada or Shopee for around ฿15 per pen.

What I really like about them is the hybrid fast drying ink. Unlike traditional oil based ink, it dries almost instantly on contact with paper, making smudging nearly impossible. I am not a fan of rollerball pens because they tend to use much thicker purely oil based ink that takes much longer to dry. They do feel smooth when writing, but the Jetstream pens are quite pleasant to use without the downside of slow drying.

I used to like the Pilot G 2 rollerballs, which are also available online in Thailand for about ฿40 (or slightly less per pen) if you really feel you must have a rollerball. However, the slow drying ink eventually put me off them.

In Asia, tip sizes are not always labeled as medium or fine, so I learned that 0.70 corresponds to a medium tip, which suits me well. I avoid fine 0.50 tips because they can dig into the paper.

If you have not tried them yet, I would recommend giving the Uni Jetstream pens a go. They write well, offer great value for money, and being retractable means no caps to lose. They are also less likely to leak in your pocket since the tip is only exposed when you click it out.

Good choice , I never knew these were available in Thailand.

I bought mine in Japan about 2 years ago , best pen I have ever used.

4 colours of ink (Black , Blue , Red and Green ) plus a pencil and eraser all in one casing.

4 hours ago, FolkGuitar said:

For important items in my life, certain foods, medicines, equipment, tools, etc., etc., I've always strictly adhered to the rule: "One in none. Two is one. Three is OK.

I never wait to run out of something. Not a matter of age for me. I've been this way since my 20s.

4 hours ago, PhilipHabib said:

Any other pertinent life hacks you're willing to share

Could you please improve on that?

5 hours ago, Harry Tuchas said:

I never heard it called loo-roll before. Do they also call it bog-roll in the UK at times?

Yes, I call it bog-roll after a curry and 5 pints in Weatherspoons ... Otherwise, when pretending to be posh I call it 'loo-roll'...

.. etymology being "gardez l’eau” from the frogs... which the brits shortened to "loo".... or if really mixing it up with the Jones' and washing my hands afterwards - its toilet tissue.....

6 hours ago, VocalNeal said:

Just wrote "how now brown cow" with a Mr DIY pen and no smudge.

Three in a packet (sic) blue/black/red.

Those Mr DIY gel pens are smoooth.oth writers.

No. In my case, I would just eat all 😄

On 4/5/2026 at 2:52 PM, Harry Tuchas said:

Do You Ever Overstock on Supplies?

Even though my local mom N pop delivers I still maintain a 6 month supply of alcohol in the spare room.