It is mid August as I write this. The days are hot and sticky and the thunderstorms are fierce. Today as one passed through, spitting small ice cubes on my patio, I got started thinking about winter. The Farmer’s Almanac (for whatever it’s information is worth) is predicting an exceptionally cold winter in our area this year, so as the electricity stutters this afternoon, I can’t help but consider how dependent I will be on it come December. I would be considerably vulnerable since I live on a little quarter acre lot in the suburbs, with no woodpile out back and no dead trees anywhere nearby.
What is my plan? Well, that is the question of the day! I am thankful for my flashlights and oil lamps. I am glad I have a little decorative wood burning fireplace that I could get creative with. But in all sincerity, NOW is the time I should be planning for winter, and I certainly have to admit that I am currently NOT prepared.
I live in an unpredictable area, enough so, that I just don’t feel safe walking outside my home. If something were to happen, making that necessary, I would easily be prone to fear. Winter would be the last season I would want to be forced into a situation where I had to leave the house or be herded into a shelter with other displaced neighbors.
Now, here are a couple ideas. On the local Craigslist, there are currently no less than 2 dozen posts advertising free firewood for anyone who wants to come and pick it up. I can bellyache and wish, but no one is going to go and get it for me without payment. So if I am wise, I will set aside my desire to be gracious and elegant and feminine for a bit, and just go pick up some firewood for Pity’s sake! No excuses. Very quickly every opportunity for free firewood will disappear as we near the time it is in higher demand.
I can dehydrate some of my favorite fruits and veggies and I already have a great Dutch oven that I have learned how to cook some amazingly scrumptious meals in without the need for electricity.
I am putting on my grocery list to pick up enough heavy gauge clear plastic drop-cloths and duct tape to cover the windows if it is ever needed. That will help trap in the heat. I have a well insulated attic, so that is good. ….I have a little solar panel kit that would provide just a bit of light and charge for my battery operated devices
There are a good number of ways I can put together a plan for worst case scenarios if I were stranded at home this winter. I haven’t named them all here, but today I am compelled to really put together a WRITTEN, strategic plan. I’d love to hear some of your ideas and strategies.
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