Debbie said:
The time after is hot, sweaty, and tempers fly. You drink more water than you ever thought you could. The only thing to do is sit in the shade and stay cool and guard your property.
You got that right! I don't mind working and getting hot and sweaty, but when the work is done, I want to clean up and cool down. I can't stand being dirty when I'm trying to relax!
The Mom said:
And as Debbie mentioned, those of us who DO plan ahead have to worry about those who don't, so it pains me to have to add ammunition and heavy duty, plastic covered chains to my list.
Yes, I feel the same, but I also feel obligated to plan for all contingencies. I also stock extra food, tarps and other materials for friends and neighbors. It's my feeling that when a major natural disaster strikes, we're all in it together and we should help each other as much as we can. As with Ivan and Dennis, we did a neighborhood triage. We checked to see if anyone was injured or required medical attention and then we assessed property damage. The people that had the most serious problems got fixed first and then we moved on to the next problem.
And yes Mom, we all need a little help sometimes from our government(s). I was not too proud to enroll in the "Operation Blue Roof" program after Ivan. Half the shingles were gone from my roof and it had more leaks than the Titanic! All the roofing companies were so busy you had to wait many months (or even a year) to even get a roofing contractor to look at your damage, much less fix it.
Then FEMA and ACE (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers) came to the rescue and provided me with a Blue Roof (plastic tarp) for free. Heck, I'd have paid them for that service. It took me several months before I could find a decent roofing contractor. The roofing business is notorious for having a lot of unscrupulous contractors during normal business periods. After a hurricane, scam artists by the dozens show up! It ain't easy trying to recover from and repair hurricane damage.
The prices for materials, supplies and labor skyrocket. A reroof job that might have cost you $4,000.00 prior to a storm will now cost you $12,000.00 or more! There is not a thing anyone can do about it! And you don't dare complain about the quality of work, because you're just so thankful that you found a roofing crew!
What really bothered me after Ivan and Dennis was getting ice. I have two well insulated large coolers that will keep ice cold for five days. So naturally, on the forth day after any storm, I need ice. After both storms, it was as if the news media had forgotten about our area. We heard lots of reports on the radio about National Guard distribution points being set up in other areas, but none in our area. We began to wonder, have we been wiped off the map? Why don't they acknowledge us?
Well, we finally did hear about the National Guard distribution point in our area, but only by word of mouth. Due to road and bridge damage, we were essentially cut off from the rest of the world so it took four days before the National Guard could reach our area. All I wanted was some ice and so did everyone else. Heck, when those tractor trailer trucks showed up, the lines of people in their cars stretched for miles. Debbie, of course, knows the routine!
I waited in a line, because I felt obligated to get some ice for my family members (otherwise, I would have done without ice). It was just so stupid. Hundreds of cars lined up (all running their A/C) and burning hundreds of gallons of gasoline at idle, while waiting for a few bags of ice! I will never do that again!
When I got to the front of the line, I noticed they were handing out more than just bags of ice. All I needed was ice so I told the Guardsman, "All I need is a few bags of ice". He responded, "How many in your household"?, and I said "Four." He said, "Pop your trunk." They then loaded in four bags of ice, four cases of MRE's and three cases of bottled water. I tried to tell them that I only needed the ice, but it all fell on deaf ears.
I got the "official" FEMA ration for my household based upon four people. Heck, I had no use for the water or MRE's because I had plenty of my own, so I redistributed the extra stuff to people that did need it. They weren't hard to find. These Guardsmen had their orders and they carried them out. They did a fine job IMO. But that is part of the reason why I decided to get a generator and store a lot of gasoline.
If another one of these destructive storms visits my area again, I want to be totally self sufficient. I have devised a plan to accomplish that goal. However, if "Plan A" fails, then we fall back to "Plan B" and so on. My plans go to infinity and beyond! I even have Mickey Mouse soap and shampoo for my family members and I to use with the solar shower.
In all honesty, these hurricanes have been driving me crazy the last two years (and yes, I know, it's a rather short drive for me). However, now with the generator, I'll be able to run the refrigerator/freezer 24/7 for at least six days and even longer if I go to "Plan X"...
:wave:
