As a boy scout I was taught to always be prepared. I always carry some cash and even some silver on me. I had a teacher in college who explained technology best for my taste, he stated "People think technology makes our lives easier when it does just the opposite. Springs cleaning used to be the one time a year when you would take your rugs outside and beat the dust out of them. Now we have vacuums and people expect your rugs to be cleaned every day or at the very least once a week. When we sent letters we were thrilled to get a response a week later. Now, someone sends you an email and if you haven't replied in 1 minute they're calling wanting to know why you haven't responded. Technology is using us instead of us using technology." Now, admitadelly, that's a bit of an eccentric view. However, the point is valid. We rely too much on technology and our quality of life becomes hostage to it. I like to be free to continue doing business, living and pursuing hapiness even when the "grid" is down. Therefore, I do carry cash and as I said silver just in case I find myself in need of it when the lights are out. And yes, I keep an emergency kit in my vehicle along with other helpful things should the need arise..:-)
P.S. I also have many tech certs: MCP, MCP+I, MCSE, MOS - Master Instructor, A+, etc. etc.... So, don't get me wrong I LOVE technology! I just think we should maintain the ability to continue our day without too much interruption if we suddenly find it non-functional.