I'm not a prepper, but I'm a "preparer." I bought masks a year BEFORE the pandemic, because I figured it would be good to have them ready if the predicted 100-year pandemic were to arrive — which it did, right on schedule. I've always kept a good, well-stocked pantry. It's nothing crazy, and it's all foods we eat routinely: Beans, rice, pasta, tomato sauce. I've always kept a month's worth of toilet paper, laundry detergent, shampoo etc. on hand. Much of this comes from my working class history and my not-unfounded fears of running out of something I need and don't have the money for. But I've also noted that our supply chains are dependent on nothing ever going wrong, and things will always go wrong at some point. I always thought it would be a disruption due to oil/energy distribution, and I figured if the store shelves were ever bare, I wanted to be able to at least have plenty of beans and rice (and soap and toilet paper!) But also? I always envisioned being able to share my extras with others.