I agree with this. I go for the middle ground options that give me the most bang for buck. Planning for a total breakdown of society and investing any major amount of time into it is a depressing concept for me as well. I can see how its a lot of fun for many people but I'd rather build for an optimistic future rather than a bleak one.
I meal prep out to a buffer of about a week. These are extremely high quality meals that I eat regularly. Beyond this, I have about 2 additional weeks worth of dried, frozen and canned foods sitting around that are sub-par but get the job done. None of this requires any extra ongoing maintenance aside from the occasional 5lb bag of rice or can of beans at the grocery store.
I also have a way to distill water in reasonable quantities and a power source that can run my entire house for as long as I can locate fuel. I have a rotating 48 hour supply on-site and burn older generator fuel in my car so I don't have to waste anything or worry about it going bad. I also have a very small generator that can run critical loads (fridge/freezer) for a much longer timeframe if I have trouble finding quantities of fuel that can support the larger unit.
Anything that causes disruption beyond a month, I don't bother planning for. After the 3rd week of apocalypse I figure I am going to try to venture out into the hellscape and start working with others to put the pieces back together.
Being able to defend yourself is also very important, but going overboard is ridiculous and can even make you a target if you are open about it. A good shotgun and/or handgun are all you really need if you aren't planning to go out and assault other people. Ample ammo is always good, but you can only effectively use 1 weapon at a time unless you have friends/family/neighbors who can also use them on your behalf.