Making A Plan

So, do y'all store emergency water at home? If not, why not?

If so, how many gallons, and how many people live there?

We live on a well system, not city water, but I'm aware that 1) the well pump runs on electricity, and 2) even if the electricity didn't go out, if a big enough natural disaster happened here, that well could be churning out nothing but mud for days.

We have a lot of water stored, more than we'll ever likely need, but that's because after we put in a basic emergency supply we had some more gifted to us and we have the space to store it. We've got between 65-70 gallons; that's for drinking and cleaning and flushing toilets, for three people and four dogs.

How's by you?

I read a story online about a pandemic. The story was purely fictional, but I'd love to read it again. There were probably 20 chapters.

Does anybody know the story I'm speaking of?

I was going to write an entry that discussed What To Do and How To Prepare if you get sick, but then I found that it had been done for me, three years ago. Replace "avian flu" with "swine flu" or, really, any other human transmissible illness.

It's too long to cut and paste, and there are excellent suggestions in the comments anyway, so I'll just leave the link.

The only thing I would add to her list are face masks. These are incredibly cheap and easy to come by in grocery stores right now; however, should there be an outbreak of *anything* in your area, you'll likely be dependent on picking some up from the government. Just buy a few boxes now; they don't go bad.

Crossposted to my personal journal. Apologies to those who are getting it twice.

In a decision that has delighted many, the Obamas are planting a large food garden on the White House South Lawn. It will be organic and have several varieties of vegetables, herbs, and berries, many requested by the White House cooks.

I think it sends a wonderful message about enjoying food, the outdoors, and the bounty of nature, encourages people to take a more active and aware role in their diets, and carries on a tradition of agriculturalism as valued by Jefferson and others.

An additional reason why people often grow food is that it gives them a sense of self-reliance. True, the grocery store or even the farmers' market is usually more reliable than your local weather and gardening skills, and growing your own food is usually more expensive than buying it. But if you end up moving to a different place where stores aren't so reliable, if there is some kind of transportation disaster or quarantine where food can't be shipped around, if you simply want to live off the grid, or if you find yourself reconstructing civilization after a major disaster, having a vegetable garden will help provide you with food security. And it's nice to feel secure in this even if the necessity never arises.

What other reasons can you think of why growing food could be a good part of a plan or preparation?

And let's not forget the planning that goes into gardening itself. The Obamas have a very nice design for their vegetable garden. Next time I get a chance I'd like to go and take a picture of the finished product.

If you are living with an x spouse after a disaster, regardless of your estrangement, you are by FEMA LAWS RULES AND GUIDELINES, considered "FAMILY". This makes you ineligible for housing reimbursement.

Depending upon the state in which you NOW reside, this issue pertains to your children. Regardless of your previous estrangement from an x spouse, the state will tell you that your x spouse has to apply for healthcare and food and make provisions to having your child-support removed per their state laws. 

FEMA makes no exception for "estranged x family". 

FEMA makes no exception for you or your children in having to live with an abusive x spouse, who has been estranged from children by his own will.

Regardless of what order a Gov. dictates with regards to the suspension of civil procedure, landlords my evict due to NON-PAYMENT of rent or any reason that they dictate and do not have to follow parish, state, or municipal guidelines pertaining to evicitions. It makes no difference that the bank cannot tell you your balance information.


Landlords can loot their renters homes, if the renters have evacuated.  The police will allow it and do not follow the Governors Executive Orders with regards to Civil Procedure.

Here's an interesting project for the handyperson/renewable energy aficionado. The following links lead to two cool articles from The Mother Earth News Online, which were published in 1981. They tell how you can adapt a bike to produce pumping power (like for water) or even electricity!

The writer admits that you can't power your whole house this way. Using a car battery to charge up and then draw from, you would have to pedal about 20 hours to get an hour's worth of electricity. But if you were going to be working out on an exercise bike anyway, hey, you'd be getting a little something back!

It's very easy to go to these pages and print them out for later use. You know, just in case of total economic collapse or something....

Part 1

Part 2

Inauguration Day is this coming Tuesday. Millions of people are expected to attend - twice as many as can actually fit on the Mall, according to some estimates (allowing for a standard 5-foot square playing grid).

Like most people who live in Virginia and work in DC, I'm planning to take Monday and Tuesday off or try to work from home. The bridges are all closed and the Metro will be packed with tourists.

I've pondered the possibility of a terrorist threat. If I were worried, I could easily spend the day at my family's cabin in West Virginia, but I'm not. The stampedes or suspicious packages that any large event brings won't bother me 10 miles outside of the city, and anything that would, such as a nuclear bomb, is unlikely in the extreme.

For those of you who live in or near DC, what are your plans and what have you done in previous years? Renting out your room, trying to make it in to the office, watching the parade from a private apartment building or government building?

For those of you who will be attending the inauguration, how are you preparing? Train tickets, hotels, any additional safety precautions? Any interesting plans to check out the rest of the city while you're here?

Yoinked from wtf_nature. Do you have an evacuation route away from bodies of water that are prone to flooding?


The "Mega Tsunami" predicted to wipe out the east coast:


In short, Cumbre Viejo, a volcano on the island of La Palma in the canary islands, is predicted to shed its Northeast flank into the ocean. Geologists figure this will be due to water or magma expansion against the side that's already sliding roughly a centimeter a year. The resulting tsunami could wash two miles inland into east coast cities. Geologists figure it's MORE likely to happen now due to global warming, as previous incidents of this type have always occurred during earth's warm periods.

A Tsunami of this type (something dropping into the ocean) results in a much higher wave than those caused by underwater earthquakes and plate slippage.

For those with phobias or not enough to worry about, if you want to avoid natural disasters, Alice Springs in Australia is about the only place you'd be safe moving to, as it's the most geologically stable region on the habitable planet (Antarctica is your other option).

How can it be that as the global economy melts down, this community is strangely quiet??

Anyhow, does anyone know what kinds of batering currencies are out there? I heard that the Liberty Dollar has been stopped by the FBI.

this is all the stuff i take out of my bag, and off my person to go to an airport




see, THIS is why i hate terrorists, AND the government
if my plane goes down, i'd NEED this stuff!

i mean, its not like i'm not dangerous with what i DO take or anything, or things that i can find there, but MAN, when you have kit . . .and have to leave it behind. . . gah!