So if you are living in the Northeast you are probably hearing about this “Perfect Storm” barreling down on us where a hurricane and and a winter storm are set to collide right over the Northeast. This is happening right around the 1 year anniversary of the storm that destroyed our house. We just got back here in July and I really don’t need a repeat – so I’m having a chat with just about any and all deities that could help keep this storm from hitting my house. We’ve cut down and back quite a few trees, our builder made sure that everything that was replaced was sturdy and installed properly. So as far as things out of my control, I’ve done my best to prepare for the worst.
So now things that are in my control. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has seen quite a bit of web traffic from me lately. Not so much that I am watching weather patterns – I was a substitute Earth Science teacher for a few months during the tsunami aftermath and had the students do a project about tsunamis. Four years later when those students were seniors and I was at their graduation, as an art teacher, they told me that was their most memorable project through all their schooling so far. But I digress I am not a meteorologist so I leave all the interpretation and forecasting to them. I’ll just learn from it afterwards.
See, Mama I just wanted to spend the day with you!
I have however, been looking at hurricane preparedness information on their site. The video was a little dramatic but they are right – have a plan before – not when the warning has been issued. So I’m making my plan. Today I stayed home with Little #2 from work because he was sent home with a fever and they do not allow them to return for 24 hours. Good plan for them – stinky plan for working parents. He is fine by the way. So I have taken today as a jump start to my weekend hurricane planning. I did ALL of our laundry. I thought since having been through two major power outages that lasted for a week or more and losing our home and being displaced for over a week as well, clean clothing and towels would be a good idea.
Typical disaster that is our home. This is from the apartment days.
I’m definitely not a good homemaker. It is actually a running joke with the ladies that I lunch with at work, that I don’t cook. My mother (love her forever for this) actually got a college boyfriend to breakup with me because she let his mother know that I don’t cook or clean and probably will never be inclined to do so ever. Well that was true then and still mostly true now. Hubby does the bulk of the housekeeping and I do damage control so he doesn’t know the size of the mess that I really make when I am home with the boys alone. But with a storm on its way and hubby at work, it is probably a good time to pick up some of the slack.
So today I washed, folded and put away (that is the shocking part) seven loads of laundry. Plus I’ll be doing another diaper load tonight. Then I will throw whatever we wear this weekend into the wash Sunday and hope for the best. My septic system hates me right now. I’ve probably flooded our leaching fields to capacity and will have a soggy lawn even before the first drop from Sandy hits our yard. But hey – I have clean clothes.
So my list of things to get for this weekend:
- Water – a gallon a person for each day (15 would be ideal but that is a lot of water, so I’ll plan for two days instead and get 6)
- Gas – for our cars
- Propane – for our grill for cooking and boiling water
- Cereal, pasta, dried beans
- Generator – I know this one is late and they probably will have the prices jacked up and the stock way low. Our neighbor has offered to let us run a cord through the woods to keep our fridge cold should the power go again. Luckily I do not have a frozen stash of expressed milk.
Did I mention I’m having a dinner party tomorrow as well? At least our house will be clean and I know Hubby will whip something up.
You sound on top of things. Hoping for the best and it passes you bye.