Hi - as an addition to the things I would do differently for my EDC to prepare for the next blackout:
I added a Minimag flashlight to my backpack. I wanted a smallish flashlight that would be easy to feed with batteries - AA are the easiest to find. I've modified mine to LED - I highly recommend an Opalec LED module - about $25, and you swap it in in less than a minute, and it will last at full light output for about 10 hours, longer with decreasing light. Or, if you want a brighter/shorter-lasting light, for $35-$45 you'll get about 2 hours or so with the various LED drop-in modules from the "Sandwich Shoppe" you can reach via
www.candlepowerforums.com. They fit in several 2-AA flashlights, including Brinkmann.
I'll carry backup batteries with me, because it's not guaranteed I'd be able to get more.
And I'll carry maps and schedules. I was left to walk through parts of Brooklyn I NEVER go through - not that they're bad neighborhoods, just that I bypass them, sight unseen, on the subway. No clue what streets cross what avenues, because it's nothing like the streets in my neighorhood.
Also, I'll carry subway and bus maps/schedules. I know how to get around the subway to go where I normally want to go, but the subway wasn't working for a couple days, so I had to take the bus. I never take the bus, and I have no clue what bus line runs where, where it meets another, what transfers I needed. That was a sharp lesson (with lots of walking in the heat to underscore it). Also, I might be forced to connect the two - alternate subway line, then walk 15 blocks to a bus stop in a totally unfamiliar neighborhood. Wish I'd had those maps with me.
And for my wife, I'll be getting her a small AM/FM radio to stash in her desk at work. It helped me to get the news reports when the power went out.
Dave
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