Jen and Dagmar, so glad you have your power back! Now you've got me thinking that I need to get an emergency supply kit together. We've never lost power for more than an hour or two but I keep thinking esp. now that we have kids we need to have some kind of emergency kit.
We have always kept candles, matches, a couple of disposable lighters, and flashlights on both levels of the house, at hand. We also always have lots of food in the pantry and flats of water around for regular use.
When i saw the state of the roads the first morning the storm was happening I sent DH to get a full tank of gas for the newer better car (Which also has snowtires). I picked up 5 small LED flashlights with batteries for $10 - they have strap handles which makes them ideal to hang from light fixtures, doorknobs, etc. so that both hands can be free. I also managed to get a battery operated radio (for use in the shower) from a convenience store, since DH and I don't have smart phones or whatever people use to access the internet without a modem. We could at least hear the news without running the car and using up the gas.
Our major, major concern was heat. The house was OK for about 10 hours but the other 22 were pretty icy. The propane lantern that we bought did give of a bit of heat but not nearly enough to heat even one room. Luckily I like bedding so I had quite a few blankets, quilts, coverlets etc. under which we could all burrow. We weren't warm but we weren't freezing either and we could sleep a bit.
So yesterday I bought 2 smaller propane heaters - one for the downstairs and one for upstairs.
The canisters they use are readily available and they can be stored for up to 4 years (unlike gasoline or kerosene which start to sediment after a couple of years).
I hope I never have to use this stuff but I feel like I'm ready to endure a couple of days in the cold much better than I did this time.
I also feel a total disillusionment with the local government, both at the city and at the provincial levels. Won't go into what is a long, long story but I don't have much faith any more in the infrastructure or those who are supposed to look after it. My thinking now is DIY or die.
Here we have a rule about disasters called YOYO 72. It means You're On Your Own for 72 hours after a disaster. So, you need to have that much emergency backup, e.g. stocked food and water, a way to heat food, blankets, and so on. Of course, here in Fla. the disaster would be a storm, not freezing temperatures, but the same rules apply about power outage.
Please, everyone who is using propane heaters--make sure you do not use them indoors in enclosed spaces without proper ventilation. Please read the directions that come with them. They produce carbon monoxide that can kill you without you even knowing it's happening.
Kids will be here about 9am to open presents and then 'breakfast' - that, by my clock, will either be brunch or lunch. It's my one time to have bacon in the year.
We lost power at 8:30 Sunday morning. No ice damage at my house. We have a nice glaze of about 1/3". Restoration estimate is about midnight Saturday. Generator going; we have heat, water, and refrigeration, plus a few kitchen outlets, but no internet. It could be a lot worse. . I am on Mom's internet today to pay some bills and check in with 3FC. Hugs to all ... Hope to be back on before the end of the weekend!
ETA, we came home from dinner at Mom's, and we have a Christmas miracle - lights, heat, water, internet and all the trappings of First World living again!
Last edited by ICUwishing; 12-25-2013 at 09:22 PM.
Reason: Updated
Glad you weren't without power until Saturday, Becky!
We had a nice, quiet Christmas. Brunch, opened presents, relaxed and phoned family, went to see The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (fun movie) came home and made some yummy appetizers and then fixed dinner.
All the animals (6 cats and 2 dogs) got presents and had a fun morning. Chico was so excited about his purple dinosaur. He was wagging his tail and squeaking his toy. Misty squeaked her chicken a little and then curled up next to me on the couch while we opened presents so then Chico decided to steal her toy as well. All that fun made me think he'd eat, but no. He hasn't eaten in almost 3 days. His next vet visit isn't until January 3rd and I'm sure it will be the last time he sees his oncologist.
Hey! I have a dog story, even though I don't have pets. One of the nephews adopted a dog this week and she got to meet the whole family yesterday. A year old mutt from a shelter. Appears to have some terrier. The story is unknown but she was in at least two different shelters. They named her Maxine and she's quite sweet. Her ears are just like Tramp's in Lady and the Tramp.
My Christmas consisted of me pretending it wasn't Christmas, honestly forgetting it was Christmas, telling myself it was Christmas, wondering what the heck Christmas means to me, and standing there in a church for a Catholic mass, thinking that churchgoing might be something restful in my life -- if only I could just pray quietly & meditate in the church without going through any liturgy or routine. What I want is a dedicated sanctuary for meditation, in which to quiet my mind. Something to note for 2014.
I've gotten into the resolution-making mindset immediately, without waiting for New Year's Day. Today I scooped up a large pile of NY Times book reviews which had been accumulating all year as I waited for the time to read them. I will never have time to read them. The bottom editions had yellowed in the sunlight. The pile was neat, but it reproached me every time I saw it. I dumped it into the recycling bin. I thought I'd feel badly afterward, but I was wrong. I feel lighter.
I have to work today but it's very quiet out there. Strangely quiet. I may have a productive day cleaning up the atrocious document dumped on me by the U.K. managing editor. It's by a German analyst and needs major restructuring and rewriting. I am intimidated by its awfulness but trying to do a section at a time, and in some places, just going sentence by sentence. There is no way a light copyedit could have made this readable or useful to clients, so I know my work is needed. But there were other jobs that I'd planned to do on these precious quiet work days ...
saef~do you have a hospital near you? Often the sanctuaries in hospitals are very quiet and often unused for long periods of time. The one in the hospital that I used to work at was used daily by Loretta Young. Sometimes Dolores Hope would join her. When she died they had a memorial service for her there. Everyone at the hospital knew she came daily for prayer but no one gawked. One of my coworkers would often go up for her own prayer time during lunch. The really only time they get busy is if there is a trauma or something that brings a whole family into the hospital.
Wonderful Christmas here. Time with family, didn't need to discipline the children overly much, sweet fellowship and scripture reading, way too much good food, etc etc.
Now I'm just focusing on strict dietary adherence to get over my junk food cravings and get the holiday indulgence eating back off. I'm all fired up and feeling great about it. I find rereading source material for my way of eating really helps me refocus my efforts and remember why I do what I do each day, which makes not continuing to slide around the scale and dink around with my choices that much easier.
All the rest of life is going swimmingly, so diet is my primary focus.
. I am on Mom's internet today to pay some bills and check in with 3FC. Hugs to all ... Hope to be back on before the end of the weekend!
