I always believed that whomever it was who said "hope for the best and prepare for the worst" made a lot of sense.

That's the best advice I can give you.

Each of us -- if we actually believe in preparing for hard times -- will do whatever we do based on our evaluation of the situation and our capabilities to do what we think needs to be done. In many cases, these "capabilities" translates into having enough money to buy what we need; however, having a clear head and a good outlook is every bit as important as wealth right now.