When credit is tight, who can buy and who can sell? Those who have experienced hurricanes or flooding know what it’s like during a natural disaster: Supermarkets run out of necessities. Tempers flare in direct proportion to the length of lines. Who has enough food stocked up to feed the family for longer than a week? A month or two? Are our farmers self-financed enough to buy seed stock for the coming planting season, or is credit available to them?

Which owner of a McMansion has planted fruit trees instead of ornamentals, tomatoes instead of flowery borders, potatoes and onions in the patch the Mexican landscaping crew is weeding every Wednesday? Foresight hasn’t generally characterized those in this land of plenty. It may well have to become a new habit for many.

Travels and circumstance have taken me around the globe many times over these past 30 years. In the countries formerly referred to as “developing,” I have long admired the ingenuity displayed by many. When imported parts are unavailable, some clever people in a workshop will rig up a spare and find a way to make it work.

There’s no throw-it-away and buy-it-new culture; things get fixed and work on a wing and a prayer. When supermarkets are the exception instead of the norm, food is grown on any patch of soil, or bought at local vegetable stands. Without a fridge or freezer, meals are cooked fresh every day. When there are no means to upgrade anything, things are kept running. Necessity becomes the mother of invention.

It’s amazing to learn how little one can live comfortably on - though for us “spoiled” by convenience, it can be a challenging adjustment. I will admit to grumbling when electrical blackouts cause sweaty afternoons, or public transport doesn’t run precisely on time. But I am glad for the experience, and better off being psychologically prepared.

When the financial and commercial malaise spills over into our established institutions, pinched by lack of funding, what must be done then? From street-sweeping, to garbage disposal, to fire-fighting, to health care? When former homeowners become squatters in the “”bank’s 4 walls”? When hard cash instead of plastic is needed to pay for anything?

And what if hyperinflation eats away at whatever cash we have? What skill set do we have to barter with? Imagine the echo in empty malls, while weekend flea markets pop up on every empty lot? How will we the people react to the altered landscape?