Post Sandra

Electricity is back!  And internet.  And hot water.  Life can start to return to normal.

Life without electricity helps with the "appreciation" factor.  I like the think of myself as a grateful person (I lead a charmed life and I know it) but this experience helps drive it home.  This experience has helped me with appreciating the simple things.

I am one of the lucky ones.  Long Island still has 450,000 households without power (out of about 1,200,000). 

My daughter was worried that I had no power but I explained to her I never lost power - just electricity.

I am thinking of putting in a small solar system (and she thought I did not have power - it takes a lot of power to even consider buying enough planets for a solar system).

I am likely to invest in a small generator to at least run the freezer.  

I am sure my list is not as good as many others but the following is my suggestion for those preparing for a hurricane:

1 - Take out a bit of cash.  ATMs do not work and some suppliers will not be able to accept visa.

2 - Have bottled water.  We were never without water but some people were.

3 - Have matches and a lighter is handy.  Matches became tough to light since they got a bit moist just from the moisture in the air since there was no heat.

4 - Have candles (and of course make sure they are used safely)

5 - Batteries.  They last longer than I thought they would.  6 days without electricity and did not even need to change flashlight batteries.  But still - it is good to have some extra.

6 - Food. Dried lentils, rice, beans, quinoa etc are inexpensive and easy.  This is the way I like to eat usually so this part is not a problem.

7 - Have some way to cook.  A propane BBQ works well.  We are lucky enough to have a gas stove.  We also have camp stoves but did not think to lay in any extra naptha.

8 - Fill the car with gas.  Right now, there are no stations with gas and any station with gas has a 3 hour line up.