It doesn't have to be winter

No secret that a lot of people in New England are living through the "it doesn't have to be winter to have a storm that raises hell with everything" scenario right now.

Now I have to ask:

are

you

that

guy?


Not throwing stones here but how prepared are you for an out of season storm that takes down power for loads of people?  No, you don't even have to have a generator - it's still relatively warm out.  But you do need a plan:

Even if your plan is just to go to a hotel for the duration of a problem, it IS a plan!

So what do you actually need to account for (assuming it's not the dead of winter and cold enough to freeze the bazokas off that old brass monkey) in your plan if you want to stay home?

Just hitting the high spots here - you need a functioning phone so you can call for help if you need to.  That's actually a pretty high priority in the giant scheme of things.

And, no, it doesn't have to be that complicated - sometimes just a car charger can mean the difference between a charged phone and one that might be useful as a paperweight.  And since you always keep your car at least half full of fuel you can run it to charge the phone - no problem here!

You also need sources of light - flashlights (with extra batteries), perhaps a battery lantern (I'm not a big fan of the ones that work off propane or liquid fuel) and maybe some solar lights?

You also need a way to cook, water to do it with (and flush that all important commode) along with enough for basic hygiene.  The key word here is basic:  water to wash your hands, brush your teeth and drink.

A simple one burner propane stove will be enough to cook with for the short term.  Doesn't have to be complicated or expensive.

As usual this is not a "how to" deal - it's meant to start you thinking about what you might need/have to do if you lost power unexpectedly.  We all expect it in the winter - this time of year?  Not so much.

So take a look around your world and be that OTHER guy!

Does it have to be perfect?  No.  Will it be perfect?  Not a chance - there is always something you will wish you had done better/more of/sooner/whatever.  But it's a place to start and something to improve on for next time.

If you were totally not ready for the first time it's also a wonderful opportunity to make a list of what you wish you had done - honest.

Because there will be a next time - there always is.

Housekeeping

A note to those hardy souls who follow my blog by getting an email telling them there is a new post - and actually showing it to you right there on your e mail.

Apparently not everyone knows that if you click on the title of the post (or the "Sometimes I talk to myself" at the top) it takes you to the actual blog website and the post.

You not only get to see it in living color (orange:  my favorite) but you can see the other links that are there on the right side of the posts.  And if you are really feeling adventurous you can page down and voila!  all the other posts are there in sequential order to be paged through.

I'm grateful to anyone who reads my posts at all but being able to see the whole deal gives you access to other blogs that are worthwhile - not to mention that wonderful orange!

P.S.  there is also a place to leave comments

Just sayin!

I saw a hawk this morning

Actually I didn't see it at first, I heard it as it left it's perch on the top of the church up at the center - the flapping caught my attention.  That's how quiet it is around here that early.

The reason I didn't see it is easy - I was walking with my head down.  Wondering if my back was going to hurt too much to do yard work today - thinking of what I had to get at the grocery store and hoping I would beat the rush.  Hoping that no one did anything incredibly stupid today and started WW3.

When I walk/I worry and that keeps my head down.

Once I heard the hawk flapping across over me I stopped looking down - he (or she) landed in the top of a tree across from me and started looking for breakfast.

After I'd looked up once it was hard to look back down - the trees are in full fall color around here and the air is cool but not really cold yet.  Walking along became easier once I stopped looking 2 feet ahead of my feet!

What kind of a hawk was it?  Not sure - probably a Marsh Hawk cause there are a lot of them around here.  If I had been paying more attention I would have seen it flying rather than just landing.

Short and sweet this morning - stop looking down and pick your head up - you might see a hawk.  It's amazing!

Words to live by

Keep your sense of humor and always take it with you; always!

Keep your sense of trust in your family and friends and always take that with you; always! 

Be ready when folks look to your for help and advice. Do not let them down!!

Do not back peddle, wane  (decrease in vigor, power, or extent; become weaker) or ever become a victim. 

Make the week ahead a very good week.

Alan writes a blog - yeah, a lot of people blog these days (that word always sounds to me as if you have your foot caught in something that is going to suck your shoe off) but Alan is my buddy.

He encourages me when I think I have nothing to offer the blogging world (that's most of the time after I read what he or my nephew or his daughter or my brother wrote), he aims me in different directions when I get stuck in prepper doom and, most of all, he's just Alan.

The bolded lines at the beginning of this post are the ones he used to end his latest post.  I did let him know I was planning on stealing them.  Stealing them because if you stop to think for a moment, they really summarize a way of life.

If we lose our sense of humor we really are sunk - even dark humor is still...well, humor!  




Admit it - you chuckled.

Pretty much says it all.  There is no love without trust.

Be ready to help:  technically you do not even have to wait to be asked!

No victim here!

Sometimes the best way to approach a new week is to forget the old one!


Now lest I come across as some wacko version of Pollyanna, let it be said that I do none of these things perfectly - ok, some of them I do poorly - that trust thing is hard.  The dark humor?  I get that.  I have no problem helping people even if they aren't helping themselves but I spend too much time looking over my shoulder trying to outrun things that probably aren't even chasing me and no doubt worry about the wrong things (they never happen - something else does).

So Alan's parting shots came at a good time - a reminder to get my head out of where the sun doesn't shine and get on with things.

Care to join me?

Everyone should have a ball they love

My little dog is ball obsessive.  He loves all his different kinds of balls and will run to greet visitors - spitting the ball out at the feet of anyone who comes to the house.  He's positive that people were put on the face of the planet to toss it for him to chase.

Throw it up in the air?  He'll have it before it hit the ground.

Skate it down the hall?  He will "burn rubber" as he takes off to chase it and slide in like the best home run ever when he gets to it.

He's an equal opportunity toy lover - but balls are his favorite.  Partially perhaps because they seem to hold together better than a lot of his other possessions.  Which obviously have a far more limited shelf life!

They start out fine:

But the end result is pretty much the same.

So, what is my point, you ask?  If in fact you are still along for this ride.

The past few weeks I have really struggled to find anything meaningful to write about.  I have tried to pass along good information on surviving and preparing for everything from bad weather to hurtful family members (yeah, that was the Christmas present one) but never sure if I am having any impact.

And then this past week the horrific event in Los Vegas seems to have crushed anything I can think of to say that is even a little uplifting.  There is no rhyme or reason to the deaths and injuries that happened that night.  There is no way to put a good spin on most of the outcome.  Yes, people stepped up and helped strangers. 

Yes, the lines to give blood for the injured stretched around the block and the money poured in for the victims  and the survivors.

Yes, we are spared the endless trial and angst of a living person who would be continually paraded in front of us with all the reasons why.

And, yes, now the debate on gun control will rage for at least two weeks and then fade away - again.

So I say to you all:  find something you love to do and do it.

Chase a ball that you love no matter what form it takes.  It's probably the only thing that will lift the cloud that hangs over us all at this point.  I'm not a particularly religious person but if God didn't want us to chase our "balls" he wouldn't have made them round.

Just sayin!