Let’s get the disclaimer out the way: this is strictly a mental exercise — not an “oh my gosh, this is happenin’ tomorrow so let’s get ready” post. These are events that happen every couple of thousand (or million) years. Pretty good odds.

I like the History Channel show "Mega Disasters". Watched the “East Coast Tsunami” episode last night (there’s also a “West Coast” version). In a nutshell: every 10,000 years or so, a large volcanic landslide triggers a mega-tsunami. This episode explored the likely impact on the entire U.S. east coast should a volcanic event occur in the Canary Islands. They hypothesized nine-hours advance warning.

We tend to prepare for emergencies in our immediate physical environment. But what if the eastern seaboard, or the entire west coast, got smacked?

Your favorite bagels are (were) made in Charleston, SC — do you run out and buy up every bagel you can get your hands on? Or, you theorize that banking would be shut down for an extended period (not only ATMs, but any transactions through a branch, POS/credit card/debit card transactions etc.) — do you rush to get your hands on as much cash as possible since the neighborhood grocery store or gas station won’t be able to accept debit or credit cards? The widgets you so love are imported (by ship) from China. No more seaport.

What would you do given a geographically remote "mega disaster" — one that will eventually impact you in some way — and nine hours in which to do it?