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[Is it cold in here?]

What motivates you to break routine and actually do something to prepare?

Do you have preparedness ideas that are not common?

[Bluesummers]

Finally, all those years of being in Boy Scouts can pay off...as a lecturer.

*Ahem* ...I carry a full survival kit in my vehicle at all times. It includes various things needed to survive in hot or cold climates, with the assumption that there will be no prepared food outside of my direct control, in whatever situation I find myself in.

It's got three days ration of water for one person, ready-to-eat food for two days, military-issue MRE's for two weeks, a ridiculous amount of clothing and blankets, a buttload of glowsticks, self-lighting road flares, a flare gun, three or four LED flashlights with extra batteries, a tarp, plastic wrap, 2 rolls of duct tape, about 200ft of rope, a complete first-aid kit, an elongated grill lighter, a NOAA emergency hand-crank radio, two aluminum 4-quart pots, several knives of various lengths and serrations, a collapsible fishing pole, and a mummy bag. The whole thing fits in (and on) a hiking frame-pack, and weighs about 90 lbs.

As far as being prepared at home...not so much. I'm kind of a hypocrite.

[jwhouk]

So. What do you do when you want to actually drive the car somewhere?

[TheEvilDog]

Finally, all those years of being in Boy Scouts can pay off...as a lecturer.

*Ahem* ...I carry a full survival kit in my vehicle at all times. It includes various things needed to survive in hot or cold climates, with the assumption that there will be no prepared food outside of my direct control, in whatever situation I find myself in.

It's got three days ration of water for one person, ready-to-eat food for two days, military-issue MRE's for two weeks, a ridiculous amount of clothing and blankets, a buttload of glowsticks, self-lighting road flares, a flare gun, three or four LED flashlights with extra batteries, a tarp, plastic wrap, 2 rolls of duct tape, about 200ft of rope, a complete first-aid kit, an elongated grill lighter, a NOAA emergency hand-crank radio, two aluminum 4-quart pots, several knives of various lengths and serrations, a collapsible fishing pole, and a mummy bag. The whole thing fits in (and on) a hiking frame-pack, and weighs about 90 lbs.

As far as being prepared at home...not so much. I'm kind of a hypocrite.

MacGyver called. He wants his car back.

I have a first-aid kit at home and a flashlight. Ireland is not known for its natural disasters.

[Is it cold in here?]

Here in 'murrka we may be away from our homes but never far from our cars.

I like to fill up the gas tank when it gets down to the halfway mark. That gives me the ability to evacuate without depending on gas stations. In our last big storm, the police had to be called out to keep order at the few operating gas stations that the fire department had not commandeered.

A roll of quarters is still a good idea. If you know of a place where there is still a pay phone, it will get priority in restoration efforts and is going to stay operational longer than the cell system.

[Bluesummers]

So. What do you do when you want to actually drive the car somewhere?

Wha? Oh, the kit is in the trunk (which is accessible from within the car). So I have it in case of an emergency away from home...that was the point I had in mind when I was making it.

MacGyver called. He wants his car back.

Tell him it'll have to wait, I have to replace the paper clips, chewing gum, and potato that I used to make a grenade launcher.

[Barmymoo]

I am entirely disaster unprepared. Until very recently I didn't even own painkillers or plasters. I wonder whether I should do something to remedy this.

[LTK]

I have a dynamo-powered pocket flashlight, but that's about it. So in the event of a major disaster, at least I'll be able to see it happening.

[Bluesummers]

I am entirely disaster unprepared. Until very recently I didn't even own painkillers or plasters. I wonder whether I should do something to remedy this.

Ohh, I gotta put medicines in my disaster pack...good thinking.

And yes, you should remedy that...come December 21st, the streets will be lined with morons who think the world is ending. You'll need to protect yourself against the mindless hordes who misconstrue a centuries-old calendar.

[Barmymoo]

I live in the UK. Come December 21st, the streets will be lined with people buying Marks and Spencer's mince pies and complaining about the weather.

[BeoPuppy]

And how will that differ from all the other days?

Mince pies. Are they any good? What is a mince, anyway?

[Barmymoo]

People don't buy mince pies at other times of the year. They're a delicious Christmas food.

[pwhodges]

Mincemeat started as a way to preserve meat with spices and things, but the meat got dropped at some point leaving a mixture of dried fruit, spirits and spices together with suet (the remnant of the meat, I guess).  It is characteristically put in pies (mostly individual cup-cake sized ones, but can be large ones for cutting) and eaten warm, often with brandy butter or some similar concoction.

[BeoPuppy]

Sounds ... disgusting. But thanks. Might try making them.

[Papersatan]

My car has a sleeping bag, a jug of water and a basic first aid kit. My biggest worry when I was in the northeast was getting caught somewhere in my car for a day or two in a big lake effect storm, as those are not always easy to predict.

As far as preparing in my house, having always lived where snow storms were the biggest threat, there was not much to do:
Before a storm make sure you have food that doesn't need to be cooked, though we lived next door to my parents who had a gas stove, so if the power was out they could still cook with it.
After the storm shovel your sidewalks, and those of neighbors who you know are not well enough to do so for themselves.  Dig out the fire hydrants. If the power goes out knock on the door of older or disabled people to make sure they are ok and have a way to keep warm/cook food. 

Though in Michigan now we have tornadoes.... Which I am terrified of.  Last spring there was one and when the sirens went off I had a mini panic attack, though I still drove to school (towards the storm!) because I had a presentation due.  I should note that there was not a funnel cloud when I left the house, though when I was half way there one showed up about 10 miles past where I was going.  After that storm though I did realize why there is a lock on the inside of the pantry door.  It is a small space with no outside walls, and a sturdy ceiling...

[valley_parade]

a buttload of glowsticks, self-lighting road flares, a flare gun

Less disaster kit, more Emergency Party Kit.

[Papersatan]

I had a friend who kept the glove box full of sample size liquor bottles, for party emergencies.

[The Seldom Killer]

Disasters in the UK are mostly limited to a it of snow and people panicking that they don't have any bread (a lesser known pitiful national obsession). My disaster preparedness extends to the following.

1) Paying attention to what is going on in the medium range weather forecast.
2) Ensuring that the house is always stocked with sufficient staples to feed the household, including the cat, for at least a week.
3) Having a rudimentary understanding of basic survival techniques.
4) Understanding my own physiology and the level of deprivation, exposure and discomfort that I can withstand without significant ill effect.
5) Knowing how I can a) gain access to shelter within a short time frame and b) return home within a medium time scale.
6) Having a sensible survivalist approach to looting should the needs demand it.
7) Retaining a mental preparedness for the sudden breakdown of the mechanisms of governance and society and general key actions of forward planning.

I realise that in the UK I will probably never have to face significant extreme weather so my preparedness extends to the minimalist focus on survival. However, if I were in the US or other area susceptible to hostile changes in climate then I'm not sure I would be inclined to set up the kind of outfit the bluesummers has. I see a lot of redundancy and repetition of function in there and many things that would be rendered useless or surplus fairly quickly. In extreme conditions I wouldn't want anything near a 90lb pack on me. I'd aim for less than half of that and work on a policy of acquisition and improvisation instead. An excess of supplies means you're less likely top move out of your comfort zone, which isn't always in your own best interests. And while that's sitting in your car all the time it just adds to your fuel costs now. Petrol or Diesel might be quite cheap now, but I think there is likely to be a move towards it being expensive in the near future. In Boy Scouts we were always cautioned against wastefulness.

[Barmymoo]

I just bought two loaves of bread and a packet of tortilla wraps, so I suppose I just partook in a very British form of disaster preparedness (actually the bread was just on special offer).

If I did live in a country where natural disaster were more probable, and if I had space, I would definitely have a larger food storage. I'm not quite at the stage of thinking that LDS food storage is necessary, but apart from anything else it is more economical. My mum and stepdad definitely have enough food to last for several months (and a vegetable garden and orchard which would provide fresh fruit and veg if not destroyed by the disaster) and I think I've got a similar mindset. I'm not on any kind of medication so that wouldn't be a concern for me. I used to have a bag packed ready to leave at a moment's notice, with toothbrush, change of clothes etc - mostly so that I knew I could run away from home if necessary, which it never was.

[jwhouk]

Bread, milk and beer are the three staples that end up flying off the shelves during storm warnings in the midwestern US.

[Bluesummers]

a buttload of glowsticks, self-lighting road flares, a flare gun

Less disaster kit, more Emergency Party Kit.

Yeah, but it's not complete yet...I have to add a Bose System, some strobe lights, a couple cans of "Dehydrated Skrillex - Just Add Music", and an air horn.

Actually, I seriously should add an air horn, they're really practical.

[Is it cold in here?]

I had a friend who kept the glove box full of sample size liquor bottles, for party emergencies.

Great barter goods if you're preparing for an economic collapse.