Random Stuff and Dire Thoughts

We took the mh out to LaConner in February and it was lovely. It poured rain half the weekend, but that's ok. We have a nice dry, warm mh to relax in. It was nice enough on Sunday morning that we took a walk around the preserve. There were only 60 rigs in the place that weekend, so it was super quiet. We could hear the birds and the wind in the trees and the waves on the beach. Lovely and restorative.

Jason will be taking the rig fishing next weekend. I have mixed feelings about that! I am glad to have it to share with him, but he a male and his idea of clean is not mine. I know he'll be careful with it and the fish will have to stay OUTside. He's not too sure yet where they are going, but somewhere on the dry side. Good thing we have chains for the mh...it is still snowing up in the mountains from time to time. Like all next week. They have plows up there, but do close for avalanche control. Even the sturdy Winnebago could not stand up to an avalanche. So we hope they come home safely, having hooked nothing but fish, and not each other's shoulders and rumps.

Finally, that dealership in CA has agreed to pay for the repair of the mh's hood. We got a second estimate that was even higher than the first estimate, faxed both to the CA dealer (again) and called Winnebago to complain again. Next day, lo and behold! Our repair was approved and the dealer up here notified. Those Corporate guys can surely shake the trees good. Yay! Winnebago Corporate! Thank you!

Ray and I are considering the purchase of firearms. Yep, you heard it here first. In fact, I suspect Ray will be home soon with a Ruger. I am undecided yet as to what kind of gun and even whether or not I will have a personal weapon. We are thinking it might be wise to have some "home protection" as things in this world do not seem to be getting better and occasionally, we will be sleeping in parking lots and possibly in some out of the way places where we will have no company in the form of other motorhomers or campers. And we'll still be in the house for a couple of years and who knows what might happen? (I hope you all have a goodly supply of toilet paper!)

I have seen the pictures of the devastation in the midworst. Tornadoes are one reason I do not live there any longer and do not care to live there in future! I can't even begin to think what one does when everything is gone but splintered trees and a huge pile of house debris. If I lived in the midworst, I'd surely have me one big, deeeeep storm shelter. And plenty of TP. Other than that, what does a family do to prepare for having the family home exploded by a tornado?

There are other things to prepare for though. Loss of income, disability, food shortage, snowstorms and ice storms, crop failures, electrical outages and even more. Toilet paper shortages! I know you are chuckling over TP shortages, but think about it! What's worse than being out of TP and you can't get to the store to get more because the snow is 3 feet deep in the streets and the store is closed anyway? Stores these days have just in time inventory systems, which means 3 days and the shelves are probably bare of anything edible. Sobering, isn't it?

So, are you prepared for whatever disaster is likely in your neighborhood? Have you ever even thought about it? What disasterous things do you feel are most likely for where you live? For us, we think there's a goodly chance of volcanic eruption, ice/snow/wind storms, earthquake. All those things could mean loss of shelter, water, loss of electricity and/or gas, food shortages, and the feared TP shortage. If there's no electricity, the ATMs and gas pumps don't work. If you have pets, do you have emergency supplies set aside for the pets? Can you feed yourself and your family for a week or more if something disastrous happens? Without gas and electric? If your house is destroyed or unsafe, where will you sleep? How will you keep warm?

We just received our Volcano Stove (aka Crisis Cooker). It will cook with propane, wood, charcoal. It takes about 6-7 briquettes to cook a meal with that stove. It bakes, broils, grills. And it will warm us up too. We think it's going to be fun to experiment with!

And there's your daily dose of gloom and doom. Don't just worry, DO something to prepare!