June 17, 2008
Preparing for dark days
Remember last winter when I didn’t have power for almost four whole days? I had candles and oil lanterns all over the house and couldn’t get enough light to read after the sun went down. I was afraid the dogs would knock over a candle or lamp and start a fire, so I placed them up high, but that meant lousy light quality for reading and finding things. I had two flashlights, too, and used up a slew of batteries before power was finally restored. Trying to live normally during a power outage is a dangerous and costly process. I’ve replaced all the stuff I used up from my emergency evacuation box, but I’ve been meaning to upgrade it and haven’t done that yet. We’re in hurricane season again, so I should do it soon. A shake LED flashlight would be a good addition. They don’t use batteries - you just shake them for one minute to build up enough power for half an hour of light. It’s a cheaper and greener way to go, and I won’t have to worry about setting the house on fire when I need to carry a light around from room to room. It’s affordable, too, costing less than what I spent on batteries during the great blackout, so it will pay for itself in savings pretty quickly. If this is sounding familiar it’s probably because you read about it in “O at Home” (the Oprah magazine.) I can’t think of any reason not to add a shake LED flashlight - or two or three - to my evac kit.
Now a message from your mother (hey, I’m someone’s mother so I have to do these things!) Have you got a fully-stocked evac kit ready for emergencies? If you don’t, would you take care of that soon so I can quit worrying? There are several emergency preparedness posts in my archives, but your local phone book and civil defense organizations are the best places to find out everything you need to know so you’ll be ready when disaster strikes. Don’t say it won’t happen to you; it’s happened to me a few times and my evac kit has gotten me through some rough times. You should know the evacuation routes and shelters in your area. You need to know what you can take to a shelter with you, and how much. You need to be ready to hunker down with no outside contact for three or four days if you have to shelter in place. And you really should do it with as much eco-friendliness as possible. The link above will take you to innovative green solutions that will give you something to feel good about when bad times come. Eco-friendly radios, water filters and lighting belong in your evac kit, so check it out!
[tags]eco-friendly products, ecogeekliving, emergency kits, evacuation kits, flashlights, green solutions, shake LED flashlights[/tags]
Posted by skeet @ 2:15 pm • Electronics, Home & Family
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June 18th, 2008 at 6:27 pm, Whim Says:
I have a LED flashlight (not the kind you shake though), and it is amazingly bright.