We were up near Boston this weekend. For those of you who didn't see, the Northeast was SLAMMED by heavy rains this past weekend.

Driving home on I-90, we were making great time...and then the traffic just stopped. For 4 miles, we just creeped along. We were at the "Highest Point on the Masspike" when it was clear that:

a) We had at least a few more miles of this horrible traffic
b) It was almost dinner time and my son (6) and daughter (2) were starting to scream for food.
c) The next exit was 16+ miles away, it was a Sunday night, after 5 PM, and we didn't know what - if anything would be open for a dinner stop.

No problem. Just pulled the car over into this nice turn-out area on the right, opened one of the emergency kits, pulled out the butane stove, a couple of cans of "Dinty Moore" beef stew, a gallon of water, and a package of crackers. Got out the camp kitchen items - bowls, cups, lexan utensils, cooked up dinner right on the back of the mini-van, sat, relaxed, got a visit from a state trooper checking in on us, chatted with him a while, ate a good meal, has some granola bars for dinned, cleaned up, and got back into traffic. We had enough food left to do three more meals on the go like that if we needed to.

Turned out that the right lane had been washed away from the storm, they were rebuilding it as we passed by - water was stil roaring off the hillside. Dangerous work! We sat in traffic a total of 3 hours, not much, when you compare it to the Houston evacuation, but still more than we wanted. The kids thought it was "silly" to cook in the car like that, but that actually helped calm them down a bit.
Not an "emergency" in any sense of the word, but a creature comfort issue.

If it's raining could this be called a dry run <img src="/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" /> Now upgrade with some instant coffee, tea, hot chocolate,tang. Those state troopers get tired too. Pack a few extra cups for them !

Oh, we had all that too - a plethora of dried beverage stuff...the trooper has his OWN beef stew as it turns out!
Carries a food kit in his car all the time. Says he's used it dozens of times over the 25 years he's been a trooper.

It's actually the highest point on Interstate 90 east of South Dakota.

Speaking of Beef Stew....
During my deployment to New Orleans with the Red Cross, we were often given "heater meals" of beef stew. These consisted of a double walled can. Beef stew in the center and a combination of a water bag and (I think) baked limestone in the outer can. You punched a hole in the water bag and it caused a chemical reaction that caused the limestone to become hot. Heated the beef stew in about 3 minutes...realllllly hot!

I have not seen these on the market anywhere. Good stew too. Would be perfect for vehicle use. Actually that is where I ate most of them. Worked great.

Truck stops have "self-heating" food.

Every year we drive from Virginia to Iowa(where the wife is from). We've had a few of those sudden backups, usually we would pull into the first rest area and chill out for a while,cat nap, or snack. After getting into "that preparedness thing" as some call it, I started packing a one burner dual fuel Coleman stove. Now, we pull into a rest stop and fire it up. Stew and a GOOD cup of perculator coffee and we are ready for the rest of our trip. A few state troopers along I64/I70 have joined us for a cup also.

Oh, I noticed. We've adopted a 12-year-old pooch from a local rescue. "Arnie" likes his food and drink, and rapidly gained back the weight he lost being shuffled around animal shelters. He likes his food and drink so much that he needs to go outside OFTEN to do his business.

Out we went, again and again, despite the rain coming down in buckets. We were both soaked, but my little buddy started shivering. We went upstairs and into the bathroom. I turned on the space heater, put Arnie down a decent distance away from it and towled him off.

I caught him looking at me. His eyes were saying, "No one ever did this for me before." I replied, "Better get used to it. We spoil our animals."

His shivering ceasing almost immediately. The wagging tail was my reward.

-- Craig

Dogs are good judges of character. Looks like you made a friend for life. Nice job on the adoption.

Being a dog lover, I am more then slightly prejudice <img src="/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />. But I believe the unconditional love and loyalty a dog demonstrates can bring a tear or more to even the toughest of the tough.

Pete

He's really sweet. A nice old guy. We try to adopt older dogs because everyone seems to want puppies. We're homebodies and we like to laze about and watch TV or read, so an older dog fits our lifestyle.

Our first adoptee was a toy poodle our vet described as "older than dirt." She was very spunky. We called her Peanut, because she was a cute little peanut. She was about at the end of her lifespan, but we figured living with us was better than living in a cage in the cat room at the SPCA. They put her in the cat room because she was so small.

We gave her a very good last year and showered her with lots of love. My mom said she probably never had it so good. Peanut had been neglected and lost most of her teeth. But she gained a pound, topping out at seven. Her age caught up with her in the beginning of last summer and she became very ill.

We had her put down, paid for a private cremation, and brought her remains home. We saved her collar and the sweatshirt we bought for her, which she wore even in the summer because she was so tiny she shivered without it.

Tough on us, but worth it. Arnie is worth it, too. Older dogs seem more appreciative, somehow.

-- Craig

Especially when they know how bad it can get. A little kindness goes a long way.

Indeed it does. Dogs are usually a bit repressed for the first month or so. They're not sure they are there to stay.

When they realize they are "home" for good, you know it, because their inner selves emerge as if from hibernation. They become playful and you can see they're happy. They have their own charms and foibles -- much like us.

-- Craig