That’s my plan. (The sparingly/intensely, not your entire routine!) I don’t think our sun can keep our solar generators powering everything constantly, but we can run the well pump to fill containers, rotate freezers, flush moderately, etc. We have plenty of candles, battery lights, and solar lights for regular life, so they’re also available for emergencies. When we built this house, we knew we’d be installing a good wood stove. Just a day and a half with our regular fireplace during Sandy was much worse than I ever anticipated. And I can put pots of anything to heat up on the wood stove! My favorite splurge was building a large pavilion so we can cook outside under cover in bad weather. That’s not solely for emergency purposes, but it’s a plus. Im trying to think of what other basic things we have as we prepare for a possibly big snow dump next week. Solid first aid supplies. Buckets for hand washing things. A retractable line in the laundry room for drying. Like others have mentioned, blankets galore. Extra pet food, of course. And extra “human food” storage with them in mind if they were to somehow run out. People, for sure. That’s not something one can just run out and grab, but building those relationships is a big deal. The car has solar and crank chargers, bivy bags and space blankets plus regular blankets. Water, coats and shoes (I have a habit of dashing out in a hoodie and crocks to chauffeur), cash, flashlights, first aid kit, compass, paper maps, and rain gear. Plus an anchored in clip for the big dog’s harness and carrier for the tiny dog. And a shovel.

😅 Finding a consecutive 30-45 minutes in my day without giving up sleep! I’m forever hopping from one thing to the next I have an awesome gym in my basement. I just need to arrange my mornings better.

I have absolutely nothing positive to report, except that I’m trying to accept that I need to get back on the proverbial horse. I had a rotten nightmare the other night that I lived in a house with many flights of stairs and I was too out of shape to reach my kids just one floor up. And it’s legit. The 2x/wk I have to go to school, it’s on the 2nd floor. And I need a sec to catch my breath. 😞 I’ve been in pretty good shape many times. I know I can again. I just need to shut up and do it. Hoping to make this the month!

Oh, I meant to back it up with the national leadership call to action. https://www.fema.gov/fact-sheet/fema-administrator-deanne-criswells-remarks-national-emergency-management-association

Gingerly approaching another element… and I REALLY hope to avoid debate, though I recognize it might happen anyway. There are aspects undergoing revision and reprioritization due to increased information about the intelligence on cyber attacks to infrastructure. This is a major part of why I want to get more community partners. Our public spaces can only accommodate maybe 5% of our population. Even if we estimate that 25% wouldn’t quickly need organized assistance or guidance AND another 25% are close friends or family with those people, that still leaves a few thousand people plus visitors who may not be prepared for just 72 hours of an emergency. So gentle nudging into awareness and basic preparedness needs to happen. I have to tackle three tiers on this - my local officials, the leaders of private communities, and individuals. My comfort zone is with those private community leaders. They love looking important and productive! The other two are my weaknesses. Any tips on raising awareness with sleepy town people who don’t see a problem are welcome!

I think (or even hope?) there are people here who don’t expect to have or need anything. Long-time residents lean toward rural preparedness; hunters, wood heat people, natural spring owners, etc. But our population doubled over about a decade, with people from urban areas who aren’t as aware, and lots of visitors who definitely aren’t aware, which sometimes leads to actual tragedy.

Good points, though I think they did a decent job of scheduling and pushing the info out. I do think they could have done a better job to convey what CERT actually is and who it’s aimed for. For my local population, the location could very well be an issue, as the official building is on the other side of the county. If I can get the numbers, I can bring a trainer here.

Picking up hobbies like the above is a great way to live in the now and have an advantage in an emergency. My 13yo is obsessed with cooking over an open fire, which gives us all nice practice, as electric range people!

We’re definitely trying to put that together. County tried to run the class a few months ago, but ZERO people in the entire county signed up. My own CERT was done through a neighboring county a few years ago because there wasn’t interest here. I’m hoping that by talking to individual communities, I can drum up enough interest to get one scheduled here. So far, I have 1 interested president from my own community.

When you’re thinking about water, how long are you thinking? A manual pump can be a big investment. If you’re only thinking a few days, I’d put less money into storing water indoors. We did invest in a pricey solar generator, because it’s multipurpose for us, including being able to run the well pump and septic pump.

We always used the marketplace when we weren’t employer sponsored and when employer rates were higher than the threshold. Due to the ridiculous pricing, we received a subsidy almost every year, even with a fairly high income.

As for radio, I’m at a loss (for now.) In a widespread event, County would be looped in to handle something like that. But I don’t even think there’s a “regular” radio station based in our county anymore. I know there are tv stations for our general region and surrounding regions, but this isn’t a metropolitan area.

We’re similar to a village. A couple of farms, a cluster of typical businesses, a firehouse, and a park. Tons of lakes and forest, making the low-ish population spread out. We sponsee and fire responds to a library and an elementary school, but they’re not actually located in our township.

We do have plans with some orgs like Red Cross, though I’ve been known to run food for responders due to the area canteen being unable to come! Shelter is one of my highest concerns, as we have nowhere to fit many people. However, some of our private communities do, so I’m working on convincing them to create their own action teams for their residents. (One already has one.) Im working closely with our county department. We’re definitely the odd ball from the rest. They’re relieved that someone’s finally trying to pull things together, but I have so much complacency to overcome around here! (And a budget that reflects that complacency.)

That’s where it gets sticky. There is no public water, sewer, or gas, and we don’t have any electricity substations inside of our boundaries. If electric goes out, everyone is out of water and septic! We also don’t have local police (regional and state) or ambulances stationed within or boundaries. In a county-wide emergency, we’re sharing with everyone but one or two municipalities. Even without widespread emergency, some days are harder than others on that end!

That’s a good point to take into consideration.

Thank you for the input, and keep it coming! We’re a tiny (population-wise) municipality for the area. Very few residents have signed up for text alerts, which is driving me nuts. But I am working on additional avenues.

Oh yes! We’re in the middle of updating our county-wide hazard mitigation plan, but our local plans weren’t exactly done well. And our senior officials don’t really know anything. I reluctantly stepped in after two EMCs died, which doesn’t exactly bode well for me! 😆 😱 So, there’s a wheel, but it doesn’t roll. And I want to make it roll 2024 style, not 2013 bald tire style!

I have a somewhat packed day today, so I might not get back to this for a while, but I want to get this out while I have a few minutes. As someone tasked with emergency planning for a municipality, I’d like to know what to citizens generally expect to be able to look to their municipality for in an emergency. We’ve witnessed so many local disasters on the news (and, unfortunately, some first hand,) that we should all know by now that anything can happen anywhere. Key word, should. Not all of the people I collaborate with see it that clearly. So, as I’m updating documents, what do average people expect from their local government in an emergency? (Of any type.)

The only non-tinted sunscreens I’ve been satisfied with (whether for protection level or feel) are either WHITE-white and/or don’t take well to makeup on top, so it’s tinted for me if I’m going to be exposed to the sun at anything more than a barbecue with friends! You may find me in my own backyard looking like a ghost though, lol.

I’m not trying to conceal the fact that I have fine lines and am starting to get some deeper frowny ones. I already dress like a feral child; aiming to make my face look 20 years younger would be creepy, imo. However, I don’t want to make them even more noticeable! Lately, that’s what makeup has been doing. I wear it 3-4x/wk, primarily to even my skin tone, which is somewhat ruddy. I usually use IlMakiage or LaRoche-Posey tinted moisturizer, depending on my mood. Occasionally Maybelline Super Stay powder for a change. But all 3 just love to sink in there and amplify things. With or without primer. I moisturize morning and night. Usually I do a little retinol at night. No special cleansers, just plain Dr. Bronners. I’ve got to change *something because it’s making me nutty. But those are 3 very different products with the same results, so I don’t have high hopes.

I rarely agree to schedule in-office. I’ll call from home or, if it’s that important or more than 3 months out, I’ll take the appointment card and schedule other things around it.

😆 The one thing we’re required to remember is “If you have something, put it on the calendar.” Otherwise, good luck to you! But digital didn’t go well for us. We have a whiteboard calendar for the current month with a space to write important things after that, a whiteboard annual calendar that has yet to prove all that useful, and then I keep THREE paper planners for myself. Only one of those reliably gets my monthly schedule (plus the Happy Planner weekly dashboard layout.) The others are for my school assignments and daily to-dos.

Gotcha! I suppose I should find out in advance, huh? Regardless, I don’t trust my beloved baby to be safe with himself, lol.

I had considered looking into pet vasectomy, but the vets nearby don’t offer it. I’m more comfortable keeping him close to home and with his regular vet. Plus, if he were to get loose/lost, I’d rather observant people (which a lot are around here on the lost pet boards) recognize him as a neutered GSD rather than an intact one. A full grown, intact male GSD can be more intimidating for people considering catching them.