12 September 2017

Today I have been trying to imagine living weeks without power...
I heard some news about the hurricane damages and recovery efforts
and some people may not have power for weeks, or longer!

I was remembering my few hours without electricity in a house without alternative options.
I was remembering my meals in my van as a homeless person.
I heard on the news that people are getting tired of crackers and peanut butter.

I am trying to create an emergency supply of things for different needs,
hoping to last a little while, depending on what emergency hits.

We might have earthquakes here.
Some places flood.
Fire is always a danger no matter where you are.
I'm not sure what other natural disasters might happen,
but economic disasters are always an issue when you are poor.

How to live without electricity... that is a really hard challenge.

Candles would have to serve as light,
and fireplaces,
and flashlights as long as you have batteries.
Some have oil lamps, lanterns, kerosene lamps, and things like that.
I have used my open cell phone for a light source,
but that would be for great needs as it would drain my battery.
I remember how dark it was without any options for light.
We forget how vulnerable it makes us.
How it limits the things we can do.
It makes us remember the people who lived before electricity...
they pretty much slept according to the sun's light.

When I heard the comment on peanut butter I laughed.
Yes, that would be one food option that wouldn't spoil without electricity.
I use dry milk, so that would allow me to eat things like dry cereal.
You can make just one cup of dry milk at a time.
You would need water to be able to make it.

Water was mentioned so many times.
It seems to be the first supply that everyone wants.
No one stores enough water for their families...
it would take so much space!
I use to fill my empty milk gallons with water and store it under my sink,
when I had my kids, when they were young.
I use a few of the big juice containers these days...
just to have some available.
I also bought some packaged water when I started this quest to prepare.
I need more.

Life is very different without all the communication devices we rely on without thinking.
When I was living in my van, it didn't seem to matter.
The news was always bad, always so much suffering,
and I had to find a way to survive.
One of the missions in Portland had a morning room with a TV
so homeless people could see what was happening at that time.
I guess the library would be the only other source,
with the free computer access,
but who watches the news when you only have 15 minutes of public access !?
Not me.
I guess we would find out from each other...
neighbors, maybe... anyone willing to talk to us, maybe...
I hope to buy one of those cranking radios someday...
they are suppose to be great for emergencies.
I am thinking of a walkie-talkie set, too.  :-)
That would be fun to try out, even now... without an emergency.

After water, food is a big need.
I could do with a little weight loss, so a short period of suffering might be ok,
but I don't know how my health would do without food.
No refrigeration...
No cooking...
No stores...
I use to have to buy meals one at a time as a homeless person.
It is very expensive... especially when you aren't near a regular, low-cost, grocery store.
I remember I had to pick a fruit from the produce section,
maybe some cheese and/or a sandwich meat package,
a tuna pouch would work,
something to drink, like juice or milk,
and sometimes I would use ramen noodles soaked in water
to make a pasta salad.
Of course, this would only be possible after the stores had power.
I discovered cooking over tea lights when I lived in my van.
I had one special bowl that I could heat stuff in.
I used five tea lights to make a stove...
in a small round pyrex dish with a small round metal grate-like thing over it.
It was quite the accomplishment... it allowed me to have warm/hot food.
Now my goal is to get one of those propane can stoves I have seen.

Peanut butter... not my most favorite food.
When I didn't have anything else,
I would make myself eat 2 tablespoons of it as my meat source,
my protein.
I like to eat real peanuts instead of peanut butter.

No money in an emergency is so hard.
Poverty doesn't allow you to have extra funds for things like that.
I guess we just suffer without the things we can't buy.
These days I am still working on Baby Step One
of the Dave Ramsey program.  (daveramsey.com)
It is to save $500 to $1000 as your initial emergency fund
to help you survive until you get to the main back-up fund.
Anything is better than nothing.
I have mentioned before (somewhere)
that I tried every month to save just $25,
but something drastic always happened.
I wonder if I would be able to achieve that goal now...
I don't know.
I am now trying to decide how much to save for things like that.
Is $20 enough?
Should it be in ones and fives?
You can't use a debit card when there isn't a machine to process it,
or can you?

I wondered about electric transit in situations like disaster recovery.
I travel by public transit.
Busses would eventually be running,
but until they do, there's not much you can do.
Here we have electric transit.
It's the main source for getting around.

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Living without electricity for weeks would be tough.
I hope I don't ever have to do it.

In Christ,
Deborah Martin

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Lord, help those people who have to endure so much as they recover their lives.
Bless the poor, bring them comfort, lead them to better place, use this tragedy to make their lives better.
Help us all to be patient with each other in the midst of so much hardship.  I heard that many people are getting tired of this event... cover our hearts and minds with your wings and help us to rely on you... keep us calm, and patient, and loving.
Lift up the needs of the poor and the elderly and the ill... bring the best people to help them.
Protect the innocent from those who take advantage of situations like this.  Judge the evil, have mercy on the desperate, and guide us all through our suffering, our needs, our recovery.
Bless America.
Help us to see your Hand in our lives.
Make us better people because of this.
Amen.