Advice that I recently passed onto a member here, "when Susan speaks, it is best to pay attention to what she says and/or where she is trying to direct your attention to. She is one very intelligent and savvy individual!!!"

HEAR HEAR! I will second and even third that motion-

Pete

Thank you very much, guys, but I know I'm a short-tempered, intolerant b... witch. And I know I'm seriously opinionated and have skated really close to locked threads and getting the boot.

It took me a long time to realize that I couldn't please everyone. So now I mainly just please myself, it's much simpler that way!

Sue

Remember Sue we love you!

Hey! No stereotyping Witches! I've known many, and they tend to be very much not intolerant!

I've learned that it is wise to listen to what you have to say!!!!

Hi Stephanie, welcome to the fire. I'm a fellow citizen of the Houston area up on the north side. Having been here since the late 90's I've been here through Tropical Storm Allison (39" of rain in our neighborhood in less than 24 hours), hurricances Rita and Ike (no power for a week after Ike), assorted other flood events, and even an ice storm.

It sounds like you have food and water covered. Other things to think about:

Power
You don't necessarily need a generator but some sort of 12v deep cycle battery and an inverter can keep a small fan running, give you light, recharge your cell phone, and even keep your laptop computer online. Also, standarize your flashlights, radios and other electronic gizmos to just one or two types of batteries and then stock up on those batteries! I like Eneloop rechargable batteries because once charged they self-discharge very slowly during storage and they can be recharged by a solar charger.

Lights
Head lamps are much easier to use than hand-held flashlights but keep a small handheld flashlight in your pocket AT ALL TIMES! House get really dark really fast well before it gets dark outside. After working outside most of the day you'll forget this fact and walk into a dark house. Those glow-stick braclets are great for marking radios, doorknobs, cats, and other items you'll want to find in the dark. The headlamp in the bathroom STAYS IN THE BATHROOM!!
Compact fluorescent lights and the new LED lightbulbs draw a lot less power and don't heat the place up like incandescent bulbs. This keeps your place cooler and doesn't drain your power sources as quickly.

Communication
Okay, I'm a radio nut so I have a bunch of different radios that pick up am, fm, shortwave, etc... These were vital to keep track of what was going on after Ike. Some were battery powered, others had built-in generator cranks, some solar-powered. I found the battery powered ones worked the best. They lasted for days on one set of batteries and I could easily move them around, use them at night, etc.

Figure out how to use the text messaging feature on your cell phone. During Ike the land lines in our neighborhood were "confiscated" by the authorities for their use only and so cell phone towers were overloaded. The only way I could get word out was via text message. Surprisingly, messages sent locally went instantaniously, but texts sent out of the area/out of state were often delayed up to 24 hours. Also be sure to have multiple ways to charge your cell phone.

FMS/GRS "walkie-talkies were a wonderful way to keep in contact. Before Rita and Ike hit all the neighbors got together and made sure every household had one of these 2-way radios set to the same frequency. That way if someone needed emergency help during or after the storm they could call the other neighbors for assistance. That really brought peace of mind to a number of folk.

If there are lots of people worried about you outside the area set up a Twitter account linked to your cell phone. This way you can easily keep everyone updated on how you are doing, what you might need, etc...

Neighbors
Know them, like them, woo them!
And by "woo" I mean nurture your friendships with them. They will be one of your most important resources.

Tools and things
The most important tools I found for the aftermath were limb-loppers for cutting up fallen branches, heavy-duty trash bags to hold the branches, rakes, and leather gloves. Steel-toed boots, safety glasses and ear plugs are good if you are helping clear trees with a chainsaw. Hammer, nails, tarps, strips of wood, tar paper, shingles, ropes are good for patching holes in your roof, but in most cases you are better off letting someone with experience climb around up there. I have my old climbing harness to help me, but at this point in life I think I'll stay closer to the ground.

Extension cords are worth there weight in beer even if you don't have a generator because people who do usually don't have enough power cords.

You need more towels but not white towels. Also, some quick-dry "sportsman" clothing is great because after working all day you can rinse them out in the shower and they'll be ready to go the next day. You can buy these clothes cheap at Academy. I actually spent most of the time after Ike in cargo-shorts type of swimsuit, which worked great.

Other stuff
Keep your freezer filled with as much ice as possible. Buy the best coolers you can afford. Fill these coolers with ice before the storm hits even if your freezer is filled with ice. Ice is like firewood, whatever amount you have you'll actually need twice as much. Any food placed in your coolers should be sealed in watertight bags (Ziplocs or others) to protect them from getting soaked in the water from melted ice. Take care of your fridge/freezer before cleaning the yards. keep a notepag and pen with you at all times as you'll constantly hear or think of something you'll need to act on later. Write it down or you will forget it. You can cook ANYTHING on a grill as long as you have a gridle and heavy-duty aluminum foil.

Anyway, just some thoughts off the top of my head.
-Blast

Cash

Fuel -- top off frequently, don't let your tank drop below half.

In a power outage or widespread emergency don't count on the ATMs, Visa card readers and fuel pumps to function. Expect tremendous lines if they do. And have important papers, such as account statements, ready-to-go at a moment's notice.


Welcome to ETS, Stephanie. I'm also single. I Iive in Washington, DC. I have a dog so she's part of my preparedness effort (food, water and meds). We do a lot of camping in the spring-summer-fall so I'm just now getting to this thread.

Camping gear and the experience of living outdoors can come in very handy in an emergency.

Blast, Susan and others have made many great suggestions. I tend to organize camping and preparedness around themes, such as: shelter (home, car, hiking, clothes), water (storage and purification), food (storage, refrigeration and cooking), first-aid (meds, bandages, instruction).

...and: home and car (you may not be home when an emergency strikes)

I keep stuff organized in containers or bags to make packing for camp trips more efficient (and to lessen the chance of leaving something important behind).

You might begin by keeping a list of what you use everyday and what would be unpleasant (toilet paper, shampoo, toiletries, lights, a/c) or dangerous to run out of (water, food, meds, power -- heat, oven-stove).

Imagination is essential to preparedness. Imagine situations and problem-solve them and then prepare as best you can. That's what's going on in a lot of the ETS threads.

Here's an off the top of my head list of gear I deem essential (am also big on redundancy and have much of this in my car as well as home): headlamps and flashlights, candles (and candle lanterns), firestarters (numerous) radios, batteries, hatchets and axes, knives, stoves (propane, duel-fuel, charcoal, Kelly Kettle and Thermette), water purification (tablets and devices), sturdy boots and socks (car and home), extra glasses, tent, tarps, sleeping bags, gloves (sturdy work, warm and weatherproof), rope, duct tape, tools

No doubt I've left things out, but it's a start.

Thank you for your continued wonderful suggestions, i see areas where i am lacking in. In It is a lot easier when you get input from others with a lot of experience. Thank you for the wisdom that you share.

i second that!