under seige from the elements

So long as Mr Ocado has his Winter tyres at the ready..... Shrug.

Torch batteries (just in case), a camping gaz cylinder to keep in the shed (ditto), a couple of extra loaves and an extra block of cheese in the freezer - and a dozen eggs (they keep for ages and can be used in so many different ways). With what I normally keep in store, I reckon that's me sorted for a month or so...

It did happen to us some years ago - couldn't get out for 2 days. Usually have more than enough to survive in freezer/pantry - just need plenty of cat food.

I'm with jings except it's Mr Tesco for me.

I do keep a good store cupboard and full freezer no matter what time of year anyway.

It happens to us most winters for a few days and there is often a power-cut too. Everyone has a cellar, freezer and large store cupboard, we cook by bottled gas, we have wood for the stove and borrow a small generator if the power cut lasts too long. We get milk from the farm, eggs from the neighbour, Calvados from just about anybody and we make bread in our bread oven for all our neighbours. The only 4x4 in the village goes to the pharmacy on a prescription run, a farmer collects the post on a tractor and another farmer clears the road with the village snow plough blade attached to his tractor when he can.
It is very civilised actually!

Its never got so bad I can't walk to the shops for anything I might need...

We were also snowed in for two days a few years ago. We are always well stocked up because we're so far off the beaten track but I won't ignore the warnings. Better check the butane gas, candles and batteries for the little radio.

OK for firewood (self sufficient) We should be OK with our well stocked larder and freezer and the home-made wine should keep us going if we get desperate

We were unexpectedly snowed in and cut off for about 3 days, back in, I think it was, 1979 or 80. It was the day before pay day, we were skint, and we`d run out of coal, the coal lorry hadn`t managed to get through. The lady at the small village shop let us have a few bits "on tick" until we could get into work for our wages, and we foraged all over the house for stuff we didn`t need that we could burn, just to keep us warm. On the day that they finally cleared a way through, we went into town to buy some foodstuffs, and the car ran out of petrol at the entrance to the first garage we came to, and had to be pushed to the pumps!
So my priorities if we were threatened with being cut off would be making sure we`d be able to keep warm, and plenty of tea, coffee, soup, bread, butter and jam, oh, and powdered milk of course.

Nothing in my life so far has sent me panic buying, but we do always make sure we have plenty of wood and coal to get through the winter, and crampons for getting down the hill to civilisation when we're iced in, which so far has happened during two winters out of the nine we have lived here.

When have long range forecasts ever been correct, by the way?

bags the long range (literally and figuratively) forecast provided by the early arrival of the Bewick swans might be correct

And might just as easily not.
Remember all those forecasts of a "barbecue summer" early this year?
I packed up the summer cottons and linens this week and some items were never worn.

Your mention of the Bewick swans GrannyKnot jogged a memory from years ago. How I wish we'd had mobile phones in those days to video this.

Took my class of Y6s to Martin Mere Wildfowl Trust one cold and icy day. We watch the swans arriving and trying to land on the frozen lake. Some managed it well, but others crash landed. These either came in too steeply backwards, feet outstretched, skidded on the ice and finished their landing on their feathered behinds, legs in front and wings frantically flapping. Very comical.

Others pitched forwards onto their tummies and glided inelegantly along the ice, necks outstretched and feet trailing behind.

Both sets inded up in ruffled heaps when they finally came to rest, stop up very huffily, shook themselves and look confused. Luckily none appeared the worse for their undignified crash landings.

Would have loved to video this and set it to the music of the Skaters Waltz.

Great description, Anya - reminds me of the winter of 62-63 when our local loch was frozen for 6 weeks and the wild fowl had nowhere to go. Our dog thought this was a great opportunity to catch a duck but had to think twice when her big paws sent her sprawling spreadeagled on the ice.

Well, thinking more of electricity cuts, plenty of good dry logs for the fire.Also candles, and plenty of matches, and checking the spirit stove works.
We keep the freezer and larder reasonably well stocked most of the time anyway.We must remember though that apart from the few on here who live in the highlands and islands, or in remote European hideaways, most of us are never far from a shop.

Those shops are reliant on supplies reaching them though.
We live in Kent and there have been a few occasions in my life time when deliveries couldn't get to shops.

We always get cut off if it snows, I've never seen a snowplough within a couple of miles of here. I do make sure I have enough milk and bread, but beyond that we live on what's in the freezer. It's a two mile hike to the shop so good exercise if we're cut off!

In 2010 at least two supermarkets in our area couldn't open because not enough staff could get to work to make it possible. Just about everything ground to a halt. But of course we all survived. A young neighbour of ours had a two year old child who was poorly and all he would have was milk and toast, which she quickly ran out of, and so had our local supermarket, so DH and I went out and managed to get her some, but we had to do a three miles walk through the snow to get it. Well, when you don't have anything better to do...! I suppose one of the problem this year - if we are in for a long one - will be whether councils have enough stocks of road salt to see them through and keep things moving.

2010/2011 we couldn't move our cars for almost 6 weeks (house is at the bottom of a steep hill). We could get basic supplies in the village - milk etc. but managed to subsist on the ample contents of the larder and freezer. Time for another incarceration perhaps, in order to have another clear out

Nina, yes Kent, often snowy there!

At the time we were snowed in, we lived on a lane that joined together the 2 roads that led to civilisation, one across the top of the lane, and one across the bottom. Our lane, or Drove, as it was called, was free of snow apart from a slight dusting, it was the 2 roads top and bottom that were snowed up and blocked. On the second day, hubby walked down to the bottom road, said it looked OK apart from ridges of snow across the road at regular intervals, so he said we`d be able to make it to town, 9 miles away, that the secret was to approach the ridges at top speed (famous last words!). We set off, and promptly got stuck on the top of one of those ridges, which turned out to be more ice than snow, and couldn`t move back or forth. As we were sitting there, me feeling more embarrassed by the second, along came a farm tractor, hooked us up and pulled us off, whereby we slunk off home, trying to look invisible! It was 2 more days before the roads were passable, but even then the main road into town was single lane, with walls of snow either side about 20 feet high, with passing places cut into them. It was the first time I`d experienced being cut off, we moved nearer town a couple of years later.

I have never had problems with bad weather but DS and DIL did from December 2009 into 2010. GD2 was a small baby and deliveries could not get through and they could not get out of their street to shop. DH and I did a massive shop and emergency items like extra duvets and candles and thankfully we managed to get our 4x4 up their steep street. The nappies and formula were running out and the grown ups were down to a tin of soup.
Most winters the GC's school is closed in the village, for a day or two, even if the children manage to walk the teachers often can't travel.
We keep a couple of basic, plastic sledges in the garage so that DH can pull shopping up the road if we can't get the car out.

We quite often get power cuts in winter so we have a wood burner, several oil lamps, candles, amd a camping gas hob if it's off for too long. We are 3 miles from shops down little lanes. It is quite cosy just sitting in front of log fire reading, with no TV on for a change.

we have camping gas and stove...candles that are battery operated..and the basics to survive a few days,but I hate the snow and feel really claustrophobic in the eerie silence, although it is beautiful to look at.
I feel really panicky at the thought of not being able to get out and go about my everyday life.
gritters only reach main roads even with minimal snowfall,and to get out of side roads you take your life in your own hands,we live on a hill with dykes at the bottom of the road which is too easy to land the car in if driving to nearest supermarket,supplies cannot always get through to local convenience store..sometimes we dont have the money to fill up freezer in advance...but do like to make sure that at least have a few library books in as well...I do have my priorities

I have a corner shop just five mins walk away so provided the owner can get in I should be OK.

My son, who is a worrier, bought me eight bottles of water in case of a harsh winter.

I also have candles, books and my crochet to keep me occupied if I can't get out.