I went to the bank yesterday and did the drive up teller where you put your deposit slip, ID, and money into the tube and it sucks it into the bank.  Well I sat there fumbling with the deposit slip writing down my information which took a few minutes and thought back to this post of minimizing the amount of time we sit in our cars at the bank. I then realized that I could take a couple of these, fill them out beforehand and keep them in my wallet. That will cut down on the time I spend in the bank parking lot, reducing my risk of being around people, and not hold up the line for cars behind me.

Playing the devil’s advocate here, it’s also just as important to know how to protect ourselves from the sun.  The sun can give severe burns if you are exposed to it for too long, cancer as well. – SOLUTION – Wear sunscreen, and clothes that cover your skin Can lead to heat exhaustion and heat stroke. – SOLUTION – Limit the time you spend outside during the hottest part of the day. Stay hydrated and relax in the shade. Can cause blindness – SOLUTION – Wear sunglasses, do not look at the sun for over 1/2 second.

I love space and wish we could fly around in it as casually as they do in the Star Wars movies. I would travel and see so many cool things. But for now, as a mere earthling, this kind of news is scary.  Since no one has commented here, I’ll point out some things I found interesting Local space expert warns more extreme solar activity to come A solar flare stretching 400,000 kilometers exploded on the far side of the sun. If it had exploded on this side of the sun and was pointed towards us, I might never have the chance to type this message.  “If this storm was headed towards the Earth, it would cause a massive worldwide aurora effect, which some say would represent similarities to the 1859 Carrington Event.” “If this storm was directed our way, it very easily could have knocked out some of the satellites, the power grid, cell phones — the list goes down,”

The store I buy dog poop bags from has camo options as well. Those are good if you want to bag up your dog’s poop and then throw it in the grass and not have to carry it out. Just kidding, don’t be a jerk like that. Always carry out your dog poop bags. Good idea on the bright color bags to be used as trail markers. I will buy bright pinks, blues, and oranges next time I need some and replace the black bags I currently have in my car and BOB.

Some jerky, chips, and dehydrated fruit are my go to quick meals for when I’m on a trip. 

That is a great travel hack! On my last flight they didn’t even offer a snack and I wish I had brought something. Some minute rice would be much tastier than any of the airline food.

My bookcase lays flat and gets a bit sketchy at times when it rocks on the carpet. Thanks for the idea of shimming the front. What do you use to do that, just a piece of scrap wood?

Thanks for commenting on this and bringing up the discussion again. I didn’t see this before, but have now.  While watching the Texas deep freeze on the news, I didn’t once think to pour antifreeze into the plumbing. Horrible for the environment (sorry fishies) but if that’s what I need to do to keep my pipes from bursting and flooding my house…. Pouring alcohol in your toilet tank is less effective but another possible solution to lower the freezing point. So that idea is going to go into the back of my prepping brain for future reference for a worst case scenario. As for an answer to your question, it depends. You’ll find two types of antifreeze bottles at your auto parts store. 50/50 prediluted and then the concentrated version. When the ratios are properly mixed, they will protect up to temperatures like -34 to -84 degrees F (check your bottle for specifics). Lets say your toilet tank holds 1 gallon of water, if you mixed in 1/2 gallon of concentrated antifreeze and 1/2 gallon of toilet water you will get more or less the rating on the bottle. The prediluted kind already has water in it so adding it to the toilet water will dilute it even more and not give you as much protection. You really don’t need -84 degree protection though, so I would guess that even a cup or two would give you enough protection to prevent your toilet tank from bursting or freezing solid. I’d probably just start there and keep an eye on things, if it starts getting like a slushy or there is a thin layer of ice on the top, then add a bit more. Other strategies like slowly letting your pipes drip, opening cupboard doors under your sink to expose them to warm air, and keeping the house warm by fire or generator are things you should strive for first before pouring antifreeze into your pipes, but it’s a good tip to know for the extreme. 

That’s how my car kit has developed over the years. Through much trial and error. And it probably has many more revisions to go.

That’s actually a good idea that I hadn’t thought about before. Buying a pumpkin orange halloween bag this time of year might be a good idea. Or asking the prison where they get theirs. I always see inmates with orange trash bags up and down my freeway picking up trash.

This topic reminds me of a story a few months ago where two police officers rescue a man from a burning truck moments before it explodes. The story behind it is that the driver had a medical emergency which left his foot on the accelerator. With his truck unable to move, the tires span in place long enough that it triggered a fire. The man survived but did have very serious smoke inhalation injuries.  Although it was a first responder (the cops) who saved him, anyone could have done what they did by opening the door and pulling the man out. Two tools that seemed to help in the video were his night stick to break out the window and a fire extinguisher. You see the 2nd officer trying to cut off a safety tag on the extinguisher so he could use it. If they had prepared their extinguisher beforehand and cut off the tag, it could have saved them a few seconds of reaction time. These two police officers are true heroes.

I sure do feel for you guys. First Texas went through that abnormal freeze earlier this year and now Washington and the PNW is dealing with incredible heat. Both locations were woefully unprepared because it has never happened there before, grids are affected or close to being affected, people are bunkering down and trying to insulate their homes, the list goes on and on and it’s creepy how similar these two events are. I just find it interesting how these disasters are occurring and I don’t know if it’s that they always have occurred and I never paid attention to them or if they are just ramping up now. So what does your fan situation look like, how many do you have, do you have all your windows closed, do you ever open them, how are you staying cool, do you have any pets that are struggling through this with you? I also think it is neat to see preps in action, and am glad you did prepare. I’m sure you are very grateful to have water filters so you don’t have to boil all your water if a boil recommendation went out, you don’t need any more heat in that house. Thanks for the update! Wish I could come up there and give you a snow cone to help out.

Isn’t that funny how lack of cell service changes how we think? When I drive through an area that I know doesn’t have service, I feel so vulnerable and unprepared. And it’s not like I’m calling for help all the time either. Watching old tv shows like Seinfeld reminds me of the time when we had to hunt for a pay phone and wait for people to come pick us up. And if they were late, we just waited. Now if a friend is a minute late I’m texting them where they are. Oh how times have changed. 

Never seen a tobacco holster before… Funny how the people interviewing Cowboy liked it enough to put it in their article. There are some good points in this interview Don’t go around yelling “I’M A PREPPER!”. They have their small knit group of 50 people, but have good op sec and aren’t announcing it to the world. They have a leader and are organized. Unfortunately the only thing that can come to my mind while reading this article is Cowboy is like The Governor on The Walking Dead leading his little group. Hopefully he isn’t psycho like The Governor though. They seem to keep a level headed approach to prepping. “Becoming an obsessed prepper … you will bankrupt yourself,” Cowboy said. “Plan for what is going to happen.” and  “Bombs, guns, and bunkers in the ground is not us,”

Do you think you would have a lawsuit on your hands if you resuscitated someone with a DNR bracelet?

Alright, so you got me thinking the other day and I whipped out the notebook and looked through my pens. I found the fountain pen from 4th grade! It was dried out though and I didn’t have any refills. I did use my fisher space pen though. While it does write similarly to a cheapo ball point pen like I linked below, the weight felt nice. Maybe there is something to this changing the way you write. And I agree with your point of not losing a $70 pen. I would try and take care of it more if I spent that much money on one.

Hey Mr. Iowa, have you had to replace the batteries of your solar setup since getting them? How costly is that?

Your’e in hurricane country right bob? Do you see propane prices rise this time of year? Do you track prices and fill up when it’s at it’s lowest?