The Most Gorgeous...Preparedness
Happy Summer!
At least I hope you’re having a happy summer and the universe doesn’t have other plans for you.
Oooo, perhaps you got married or went to a wedding! There were so many weddings this summer, all those loved up couples postponing their weddings due to the last two nightmare summers – playing catch up. Whew dang. I can’t imagine how frustrating it’s been to plan the biggest celebration of your life around an invisible enemy. Hopefully, the betrothed all found a good florist partner to help make the day smoother. I know the good folks at Hummingbird Bouquets were busy busting out the wedding flowers and helping celebrations pop without a hitch; I love their style!
I waited to send this post until summer truly arrived for us in the Puget Sound region. Our hefty rains were on hella extended play, but true to my new glass “half full” outlook on life, the rain didn’t bother me. My dogs on the other hand…HATE. THE. RAIN. They refuse to walk in the rain. They run out, do business, mean mugging me the entire time, then run in the house like they’ve just been tortured by cats. I kinda get it since I’m not an outdoorsy type (who knew?), tent camping would be torture for me, they get their diva behavior from their mama, because their daddy is a nature lover. He’s completely unmoved by bugs, spiders, lack of proper bathroom facilities or inclement weather. However, he’s not a planner, he thinks if disaster strikes, he can McGyver his way forward and all will be well in the kingdom.
I’m just the opposite. My brain thinks of the worst-case scenario for just about every situation, great skill for my career but bad for deep sleeping. I wish I were joking but this is absolutely learned behavior. I didn’t pop out wondering, “Who’s cutting this umbilical cord and where’s my onesie?” I digress.
This post is about the unsexy topic of emergency preparedness. If your “go bag” is tight, no need to read any further, check back in the Fall, I’ll have a warm feel-good post. But if your emergency kit is just a 3-year-old Costco pack of granola bars in your garage - please for the love of cheese, keep reading! Preparedness IS a part of fine living. Trust me.
First things first, I dislike the term “Doomsday Prepper”. No. That’s not what I’m into. If the world is suddenly faced with a “Don’t Look Up” (horror film) situation, I'm not trying to survive that mess. I’d go out on my deck with a stiff drink and snuggle with my loved ones and watch the fireworks. I have no intention of roughing it in a post-apocalyptic world, fighting rats and roaches for survival, with nothing good to wear...I prefer the term “Sh*t Happens Prepper” because there’s not a year that goes by that folks don’t face out of the ordinary life challenges. However, way too many of us pad around like bad stuff happens to other people.
It’s fitting that I pen this post in late August, because it was late August 2005, when Hurricane Katrina hit, and I finally had an epiphany about disasters. I had relatives living in the south, they were thankfully not in Katrina’s path, but the images on TV haunted me. The people struggling, scared, and dying – looked like me. I realized that it could have been me or my family. I decided to put together the Cadillac of emergency kits. I figured the poor folks in New Orleans knew Katrina was coming and still suffered greatly, so it would be 10x worse for me and my family should the surprise! earthquake hit. It was time to quit thinking disasters only happened to other people. One would think I would’ve compiled a kit after the Nisqually quake in 2001 but nope –there wasn’t enough raw suffering to (literally) shake me awake.
How does one go about doing an emergency kit? Great question! My first kit was fairly basic, compiled in those halcyon days before extreme wild fires, 100-year floods/ice storms and global pandemic...I simply went online for direction.
There are a few government sites that have helpful lists. I also took my time assembling the goods. In 2005, I was a newly married 30-something on a tight budget, so I’d pick up items here and there, when we could afford it. (We didn’t have the money to just buy a fully loaded kit and call it a day. But if you got it like that, then do it! Better than no kit. Amen.)
· I repurposed a large bright blue plastic tote we already owned for all the supplies. I labeled it “Emergency Kit”, made sure my husband knew where it was and...done! Kinda. The thing about a good emergency kit is that it should evolve, ya? In 2005, we had one car, no pets, no reading glasses and no prescriptions. Looking back, I should have also done a small emergency kit for the car. The “emergency” may or may not happen while in the car (Note: the drivers stuck overnight on I-95 during that snowstorm last winter...) but it’s 99% certain we’ll use the car if we had to leave and depending on time, we might not be able to grab the tote before leaving.
· My kit(s) have evolved over the years – we now have three, one for each vehicle and one for the house, kept in the garage and updated yearly. Yes, you read that correctly, yearly. I know that sounds very extra of me but hear me out...there’s food and water in those kits. Any food my family is willing to eat, has a definite expiration date. Imagine not switching out the food, the expiration dates are years old and a disaster hits. Now you have two disasters, the “earthquake” and some foul-tasting food/water that may or may not wreck your stomach.
I know how much stress my diva essence can take, a disaster plus bad food/water would cause a mental break, for real. But I digress again.
The best way to do an emergency kit is to just DO IT! Check out the lists online, think about your family needs, pet needs, make lists and be prepared. I love to think about my emergency kits as “insurance” - much like most insurance, if you don’t have it, that’s when you need it most.
A good emergency kit is essential to fine living. Good luck.