For many years, probably since the ice storm that hit southwest Louisiana in 1997, I’ve been working towards being more prepared. It was January and we had not been having extremely cold temperatures but one night, the temps dipped to about 27º and it began to rain. Since that area never had much of an ice issue, limbs over power lines were not trimmed and it amounted to “the perfect storm”. In just a few hours of those below freezing temps, limbs came down and most of the Lake Charles area was without power from 5 – 7 days. There were no fast food restaurants open, within just a few hours, grocery stores were completely empty and without power, they were not restocked. Chad was 9 at the time and we ended up going to my parents where they had a fireplace and we were able to stay relatively comfortable and fed. But, it was a lesson I will never forget.
My prepping skills have improved through the years. One thing I remember is that as a kid growing up and as a young adult, living in hurricane zones, we always bought hurricane supplies and they always included things that you MIGHT eat if you were starving but otherwise, they went in the trash! I no longer buy anything for my long term supply pantry that we won’t eat on a daily basis. We eat and replenish everything in our cabinets. We do have some supplies that are specifically for emergencies but we know that’s all good food and things we actually will enjoy eating.
Vince has never truly been 100% pleased with my prepping efforts. He will go along with my crazy ideas to some degree. Most of the time, if I can convince him that my ideas are really, really good ideas, he will agree but always with a little hesitation. When I wanted the solar oven, I was able to explain to him that I could use it for baking without heating up the kitchen or using propane. He was fine with that and now that he sees how much I use it, he’s often the one showing it to friends. There are items/things I’ve purchased that he’s not totally sold on but when/if we need them, he’s going to be happy I have them.
It was probably ten years ago when I began talking about wanting solar panels and Vince flatly refused to even discuss it with me. Back then, we were living in Kentucky, and then in Missouri, neither of which have great “sun hours” for producing solar power. All these years, the thought has been running through my head to come up with a way to live off grid. Though we’re not going off grid, and probably never will unless there are some great technological advances in the systems, Vince has decided that it’s time to install the solar panels and come up with a backup source of power for the house.
That was such a big step . . him coming around to at least seeing the need for it. Today I saw that Vince has shared this on his Facebook page.
Vince’s FB
Do you know how happy it makes me to see this on his page? It’s one thing for him to begrudgingly agree to my crazy ideas but it’s totally another thing when he’s fully onboard and seeing things the way I see them and we’re both working together instead of me trying to figure out how I can present my argument in a convincing manner. We don’t always agree 100% on everything but for the most part, we do think alike in so many ways and that makes life so easy and enjoyable!
Terri says
Have you looked in to wind energy with a windmill? It seems like with all the wind you have there, you would get plenty of power. I don’t really know anything about them, but it might be worth looking in to for you.
JudyL says
Yes, we’ve looked into everything. We have lots of wind but we don’t have enough consistent wind power to make it cost effective. We would run into the same issues with technology/cost with batteries whether using wind or solar.
Tinkerfeet says
I say come on over and drink the kool aid, it taste very good.
JudyL says
Not really sure what you mean.
Sherrill says
You were preppin’ before preppin’ was cool!! HA Glad to hear Vince is more on board these days..makes it easier. Just curious what kind of foods you keep specifically for emergencies (sounded like those were not in your supply of constantly used/rotated foods).
JudyL says
Yes, some things aren’t in our rotation. They’re just saved for emergencies.
SarahB says
I’m in the boat you were in 10 years ago! I keep talking about it but my husband isn’t buying it. Problem with Ohio is that we don’t get good sun or wind so we would only be able to use a system part of the time and it wouldn’t be very cost effective. My logic is that “something” is better than nothing if the grid fails. At least he finally agreed to the wood burning stove! Now at least we have some heat and some way to cook should be lose power in the winter… baby steps!
Barbara says
I think so much more gets done when both are enthusiastic about the same goal!!
I’m very happy for you….
Linda says
Oh WOW! What a big smile that spread across my face. I know over the years, Vince has been a bit reluctant about some of the things you’ve wanted, but he certainly appreciates those things when needed. Having him coming round to your way of thinking is so good. Yeah!
Theresa says
It’s super-smart to be prepared for natural (and man-made) disasters. I reallly appreciate you sharing what does and doesn’t work for you. You’re so right about storing food you’ll actually eat, too. I have actually opened and tried some of the freeze-dried foods, and they’re pretty tasty, especially the fruit and veg.
Rebecca Grace says
Hmmm, “crazy ideas?” It’s only crazy until a catastrophe strikes. I share your concerns. Especially where we live, where most of the homes were built within the last 10-15 years, even if you have a fireplace it’s likely a gas fireplace, not wood burning. We have a tiny lot, only 1/3 of an acre with a good chunk of that taken up by the house, clay soil, drainage problems… I’ve tried growing herbs in a container on the back porch, but even if I could get vegetables to grow directly in the clay, I’d be concerned about pesticides from our neighbors’ lawn services. When the Japanese beetles attack in June, everyone goes nuts with Sevin. We were flipping channels recently and came across a show called Building Alaska that was following several families who were building completely self-sufficient homes in rural Alaska. Talk about off-grid! But it did get me thinking about how dependent we are on the power company, gas company, water utility, etc. I’m curious, though — your husband’s FB picture says “still having every modern luxury.” You really can run electric lights, sewing machines, computers, EVERYTHING just from your solar panels?
Susan says
Really BIG step for him to go that far! I agree with you 100% on everything in your post. The things I store in long term storage are all things I’ll eat, and I also include goodies, like brownie mixes (not the kind in a box!), because when I’m stressed, I want chocolate! In addition, I have rotating storage of … yep, things I love to eat! You and I are on the same page, and I’m glad you can take it all the way out there, because I’m not where I can. More potable water and water filtration is my next goal.