Friday, December 31, 2010

Happy New Year...Now Get Going!

I am not much of a resolution maker. I am, however, a great checklist maker. In fact I love finding just the right pen or freshly sharpened pencil to make neat square boxes and "things to do" beside each box. As much as I love my iPad and iMac, I am a pencil and paper person at heart and relish the opportunity to write something by hand.

Resolutions are full of baggage and stigmas. Checklists are fun and unthreatening. So, this year, get our some paper and your favorite writing implement and start your to-do checklist.

Of course this list will have something to do with emergency preparedness, but perhaps with a twist you have not expected.

Write out the name and contact information for your out of state contact, then CALL him or her. Say hello, how are you and, if they live anywhere outside of Southern California, how much snow are you shoveling out of your driveway? Ha! Ha!

You may think of friends or relatives this time of year and maybe send them a newsy Holiday Letter, but nothing replaces picking up the phone and talking to them. Like feeling the pencil slide smoothly across paper, we often forget the nice feeling we get when we actively participate in life. Even the simple little things.

Now what about your neighbors? You may wave to them, smile, and recognize them anywhere, but do they know where the spare key to your house is? Do they know the name of your pets so they can help them if you cannot return to your house as you expected? Could they turn off your gas for you?

So...the first item next to your top box is simply to reach out to others. Call them, talk to them, let them know that you there. Just don't wait until it is too late. For any reason and for many reasons.

Say Happy New Year today.

Friday, December 24, 2010

What's in Santa's Sleigh?

Twas the day before Christmas and all through the workshop, Mrs. Claus was making sure the Big Red Guy had everything he needed on his long trip around the world that night. And think of all of the situations that a trip around the world in one night might require! Honestly, he would need a second sleigh just to hold his emergency kit!

If you are traveling over the holidays, and probably not flying via reindeer, you still need to take your emergency preparedness kit with you. In Southern California, the weather has been crazy, with heavy rain and mudslides, thanks to Mother Nature’s winter fury. So, moving around in this stuff should make us particularly cautious!

Remember that traveling could take you to places and climates that are not normal for you. Traveling to the mountains means carrying tire chains and extra boots, hats, coats and gloves. If you are going somewhere remote or at night, you need to have some flares, too.

Preparing yourself is important, too. “Fortifying” yourself with Egg Nog might taste great, but loading yourself with alcohol then driving is detrimental to everyone. Eating all that good food one day a year is not by itself harmful – although you really don’t want to see how many fat calories are in Pecan Pie! -- you can become quite drowsy as the blood heads to your stomach to digest all that stuff and leaves your head, well, rather empty. Also, not good for driving.

While we do not have the same “time-space continuum” that Santa has to make his rounds, we still do have the element of time to use and enjoy. Take your time over the holidays. Don’t worry when traffic gets heavy or your husband needs just a few more minutes to check every lock before you leave. Relax, smile and enjoy the fact that we are here today, and happy and well.

So, in Clement C. Moore’s immortal words, “Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night.”

Saturday, December 18, 2010

Get Cranky with your Radio

Cranky? Windup radio? Get it? Yes, you are probably sighing and rolling your eyes, too. Actually with teenagers you begin to believe that people respond that way to everything you say. Well, anything that YOU believe to be clever anyway. It IS the big gift-giving time of the year (seemingly regardless of your religion, or lack thereof...), so why not take this opportunity to get something cool (gadget-wise) AND useful...The crank or wind-up radio!

Recently there have been reviews of a few different models. Generally, they all seem to be pretty good and reasonably priced. Originally these were designed for emergency situations, but they are good general tools to have around – in your car, tool or sewing kit – so you can have a flashlight that works without having to hunt around for fresh batteries. The power comes from you!

Two qualifiers, however. One, cranking means that. You have to crank. The more times around, the more power you generate. If you want time to pass slowly, or get a good arm workout, just try to crank one of these guys for a couple minutes. I was surprised how tired my arm was. Forget the gym - just crank your flashlight for a few minutes a day! Oh, I can just see the Info-mercial...

Second qualifier is that you need to crank them a few times once every few months. I found this out the hard way. I had one sitting for over a year and when I tried to get some light out of it, I nearly wore my arm out getting only a small flicker of light. Future models may improve, but for now that is just another thing to add to your “Quarterly House Duties,” like checking your smoke detector batteries.

Some Crank Devices (I will call them) can do a whole lot more. Most are also flashlights, often with a flashing emergency light, too. I would choose LED types, as they require less energy to work. Mine, an Eton Microlink FR160, has the AM/FM radio, with an additional NOAA weather band. It also an USB cell phone charger (which I have not yet tested), and can be powered with solar energy. It’s a cool green color and cost me $30 a year ago, but I am sure there are others out there that have similar features and could cost less. Especially now that practically every place has everything on sale.

So consider getting a Crank Device soon. For a present, or just because. And, believe it or not, Santa IS watching, and in this case, cranky is OK.

Monday, December 13, 2010

Greetings from Sunny Southern California!

It was extremely difficult to think of anything but sweet calming thoughts as I strolled along the beach yesterday with a glassy ocean and 85 degree weather. As I sat with my family on the bench at the Laguna Beach boardwalk, I could not help but feel my blood pressure drop and the corners of my mouth drift up. What a perfect day!

And what could possibly go wrong on such a beautiful day? Well, fortunately, nothing did. But I have to admit that whenever I leave my house, I can’t just jump in the car and go. Not since I realized "what could happen...,” by which I mean an earthquake. And potentially a big one.

When my children were little, I always had the dreaded "diaper bag" with me. How I came to hate that little bag with cartoon animals on it, stuffed with food, extra diapers, clothes, toys. Honestly with all of the stuff I crammed in there, it seemed like Mary Poppins bottomless carpet bag. It was like preparing for battle!

I rejoiced when my children finally stopped having accidents that required a change of clothes and started growing up. What a freedom I felt! Now, alas, the diaper bag has been replaced by another bag...the emergency bag. So when I go somewhere, anywhere, I feel compelled to make sure I have a case of water in the back, some comfortable walking shoes and a jacket. I also toss in a blanket and first aid kit for good measure.

There are certainly more things that I carry when leaving home for a longer trip, but those are my mainstays. I really don't think of this as being paranoid, but I would likely really kick myself if I got stuck with my family somewhere when I didn’t have the basics. So I take a few extra minutes while everyone in the car sighs and glance at each other while mom gets just a few extra things. It does not bother me, though. Not when I can sit on the beach in December in 80 degree weather and feel very calm and assured.

And at least I didn't have that darn diaper bag.

Monday, December 6, 2010

Promise to Prepare

Promises are to keep, right? The reality is that we TRY to keep them. However, unlike New Year’s Resolutions, a “Promise to Prepare” in Orange County [http://readyoc.org/promisetoprepare/index.html]
is one that is easy to make and fulfill. It is simply: Get a Kit • Make a Plan • Volunteer.

WHAT? You have to DO something? Yes, but it is really easy, and I am here to help...

1. Get a Kit.
This is really not as difficult as it sounds. There are LOTS of places to find information on what to have, how to store it, and so on, but I would recommend starting at the Emergency Preparedness website at CSUF: http://prepare.fullerton.edu. On that site, you will find “12 Steps to Preparedness.” Read them all at once, or, as it was intended, read them one at a time, once each week. Before you know it, you will be very prepared and it will seem like hardly any effort at all.

2. Make a Plan.

Making a plan simply means considering the things that are important to you and what you would do with/for them in an emergency. A Family Plan, a Pet Plan, a Car Plan, an Evacuation Plan. Often just thinking about what you need to do will lead you to some really good solutions on what things need your attention. And, at readyoc.org, you will find lots of templates to help you.

3. Volunteer.

Volunteer at work to be your emergency coordinator for your office. Volunteer in your neighborhood to be a source of information for preparedness. Trust me, you WILL benefit from having those around you well prepared for an emergency. Having those around you educated, prepared and able to help you and your community will mean that you will be way ahead in the survival game in a large scale disaster.

So, that’s it. Just 3 things. It’s really not so hard, and it is a promise that you will very glad you kept.

Sunday, November 28, 2010

My hope for all of us

I am late for my blog. I really do try to publish every Friday, but there was just too much going on this week. Thursday was dinner at the in-laws and Friday was meant for early morning shopping sprees and eating even more turkey. I could blame it on the tryptophan in the turkey making me too drowsy, but that correlation is completely false. People get drowsy because they just eat too darn much. It was probably getting up at 3 am to shop that completely wore me out. Who keeps deciding to make those sales earlier each year anyway??

But this extra day has given me the opportunity to reflect on humanity and what would happen when a disaster hits.

Earlier this week I was in San Francisco with my teenage daughter. While waiting for our car in the parking garage, we engaged in some light-hearted conversation with two gentlemen also waiting for their car. As we got in our car, my daughter remarked how nice they were and how great it feels when complete strangers take the time to be pleasant and have a conversation. It got me thinking about something that Steve McAndrew (He's a fabulous person with the International Red Cross--more later) noted about this phenomenon in Haiti. In the middle of complete devastation, people, often strangers to one another, offered their hand, their help, their humanity to one another.

So my brief message this week is for the hope for us. I hope that civility and sincere help and giving to one another in times of crisis will triumph even in times of despair. I hope so. I sincerely hope so.

Friday, November 19, 2010

Is Being Prepared Also Being Secure, and vice versa?

Yesterday I asked a police officer how prepared he was for an emergency. Do you have lots of water at home and your car, emergency kit, food, etc? Nope, he said with a smile. I got guns. I can get what I want. Of course he was joking, or at least I think he was, but there was a little sliver of truth there that got me thinking. What if I have really prepared myself, but others have not. Won’t they want my stuff?

I shuddered when I recalled Aesop’s Grasshopper and Ant fable. In that story, the Ant’s diligence pays off. The Grasshopper fiddled and played while the Ant worked to store food, so when winter came, the Grasshopper lost out. Big time. But in that tale, the Grasshopper didn’t have a gun either.

I would be the last person to advocate getting a gun for your Emergency Preparedness Kit. It’s not that I don’t know anything about guns. I grew up on a farm where my father taught me to shoot a rifle. I loved being with my father and went pretty much everywhere he went, which included hunting deer, rabbits and squirrels. But the rifle had a role in that rural setting and it was used strictly for putting meat on the table and nothing else. The point is that I don’t believe guns, notably handguns, should be a normal part of anyone’s “things to keep around the house.” This is the 21st century, for heaven’s sake. Can’t we just get along??
But what if...? It does make me pause. What if the Grasshoppers come to my house looking for my Antly reserves? I have no problem in standing up to bullies, but I am also realistic. In stressful times, people will not act as they normally would and desperation might make people do abnormal things.

As a mother, I am very protective of my children, but I am definitely in the “lightweight” division in any battle and I really need to consider other ways to BE PREPARED! Hence, I have decided that I need to do the following:
1. I need to make a concerted effort to get my neighbors prepared. If it takes a village to raise a kid, it will certain take the efforts of an entire neighborhood to survive a big disaster.
2. I need to secure my reserves. It will be no Fort Knox, but I really should make sure that the place where my Emergency Supply Bins reside are not set out like a buffet bar.
3. And I will get some pepper spray. You can buy a “civilian” caliber pepper spray canister for personal protection at sporting goods stores (although I fail to see the “sport” in using pepper spray...). It is obviously more of a deterrent than Homeland Security, but it might be enough to scare away a Grasshopper, or two.

You can’t prepare for it all, but by remembering human nature, you may be able to build secure surroundings to protect yourself, your family and the community you call home.

Friday, November 12, 2010

Why We Don’t Prepare, Part Two

From my October 29 blog, we now know that PROCRASTINATION is the proverbial ball and chain around the ankles of those who know they need to do something, but, well, never really get around to it. Part Two of this double-edged sword is equally harmful, but also “curable.”

AVOIDANCE BEHAVIOR. n. A conscious or unconscious defense mechanism by which a person tries to escape from unpleasant situations or feelings, such as anxiety and pain. [1]

Avoidance behavior simply keeps us from doing what we need to do. This is not just putting something off until later. This is completely ignoring its existence. And the problem with this behavior is that it is “self-reinforcing.” According to psychologist Dr. Russell A. Dewey [2], we avoid things we don’t like to experience, which means that we avoid bad feelings and then feel good about not dealing with the bad, which reinforces the avoidance and.... well, you see how the dog chases its tail. It’s called “escape learning” and every one of us does this to some degree.

The good news is that there are some pretty basic steps we can all take to tackle this destructive behavior head-on and with relatively little pain. In my search to find some background information, however, I Googled “avoiding unpleasant things” and was momentarily thrown off track by a topic on “Avoiding Unpleasant Encounters: Backcountry Bear Basics,” [3], and “Tips on Avoiding Unpleasant Surprises in your Pancakes!” [4] – exclamation mark theirs, not mine, with an announcement that “Pancake Day is nearly upon us.” Who knew?

From Brighthub.com [5], I found “Strategies that can help you stop avoiding the things you don’t want to do.” These simple yet brilliant ideas were:

1. Find something you want to do even less
LOVED this one. I am quite sure we can find many things we’d rather not do than start putting together your family’s disaster kit. Share your lists with friends. Could be fun!
2. Break down the task in smaller parts
Something I had suggested in my earlier messages. Step by step, you can do little things. It is just important to keep going once you have started.
3. Reward Yourself
Treat yourself to a cup of frozen yogurt or a new book after you finally get your important contact information and instructions to all of your family members. Make a list of rewards for future milestones.
4. Set A Time Limit
Yes! Even if you spent 10 minutes a week on disaster preparedness, that is the same time spent on an easy level of Sudoku and much more worthwhile. And in a year’s time, you will have devoted over 8 hours getting prepared!
5. Keep Focused On What Is Important
Put up a photo of your family, your dog, your next year’s vacation spot – whatever it takes to remind you that you need to keep working on emergency readiness so you will survive and recover. They all depend on what you do today.
6. Sue’s Addition: Remember that all this preparedness stuff is a positive thing.
You will rest better at night knowing that you will come out of any disaster in good shape. You will have prepared yourself, your family, your car and home for the worst.

So don’t avoid that proud smile and a pat on the back for being prepared. Enjoy it. You deserve it.


1] [http://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/avoidance+behavior]

2] http://www.psywww.com/intropsych/ch05_conditioning/avoidance_and_escape_learning.html

3] Backcountry Bear Basics: The Definitive Guide to Avoiding Unpleasant Encounters by David Smith

4] http://www.prlog.org/10530761-rentokil-tips-on-avoiding-unpleasant-surprises-in-your-pancakes.html

5] http://www.brighthub.com/office/home/articles/25537.aspx

Friday, November 5, 2010

When it rains...

You have heard the saying...when it rains, it pours. Maybe that is more of a term said in places where it rains much more often than southern California. In the 21 years I have lived here, I have only witnessed it "pouring" a couple of times. You know the kind… where the drops are big and closely spaced together and it seems more like a thick wall of water than individual drops.

People think that I experienced heavy rain while living in Seattle for 6 years. Not true. I experienced a LOT of rain because it fell with almost daily regularity, but rarely heavily. In Thailand, I got caught in a tropical rain storm that felt like I was standing in a waterfall. Now that’s a "downpour.”

The point of all this is to remind us of the power of water and what Mother Nature can do with it. Haiti, who experienced a devastating earthquake last January and recent outbreak of cholera, is soon to expect another swipe at their island home-- a hurricane. Nature takes no notice of the need for recovery because that is just how the natural world works.

So when we are preparing for emergencies, we usually think of preparing for a fire, or an earthquake, or (actually possible here) a flood, we think of a single disaster. The reality is that, as our Haitian neighbors are experiencing, we could be hit with a series of disasters. Southern California has already experienced that in the form of mudslides which follow wildfires. It’s sad to read about these incidents but since they are in relatively small and/isolated areas, we tend to forget about them quickly, and relinquish them to “somewhere else.”

So when putting together your Emergency Preparedness kits, try to envision the variety of disasters that could happen, at different times of the year and possibly together. No disaster is fun, but surviving doesn't have to feel like you are in a constant downpour. Just make sure you start getting ready now.

Friday, October 29, 2010

Why we don't prepare, Part One

You mean there’s two parts to this? Sorry, yes. While I have been preparing for the Great ShakeOut this year, it seems that I have run across two main reasons why people don’t prepare for what we all KNOW will eventually happen. This is what I found. Part I.
PROCRASTINATION. That’s it. One word, so simple. Yet, it belies something that really keeps many people from doing what they know they need to do. Like cleaning out your garage, or writing your will. It’s not that you can’t, you simply don’t.
According to an article in MedMD (1), it is not our perfectionism that keeps us from doing stuff. We all know that person who claims, “Well, if I can’t do it right, I don’t want to do it at all.” Actually, perfectionists typically will do stuff they don’t like to do because, as perfectionists, they tend to worry more about the things they haven’t done and they don’t like things piling up in their to-do lists. For the rest of us mere imperfect mortals, according to this article, it is possibly a lack of confidence. Do I really know HOW to do this? What if I screw up?
Self control and evaluation of our actions separate us from our animal cousins, says Psychology Today (2). We make decisions, contemplate them, then act accordingly. Or not, if you procrastinate. It’s not even bad time management that slows procrastinators to glacial speed (although with global warming I will soon need a new metaphor…). Brand new planners will stay brand new, untouched in their desk drawers. In fact, they are usually time wasters and actively look for distractions, such as email, the equivalent of repeatedly yelling “Squirrel” to the dogs in the movie “UP.”
Unfortunately, procrastinators often have problems with their health and relationships, which both suffer because they keep avoiding their immediate attention. Then they lie to themselves and blame their situation on others. It’s a vicious cycle.
There is a silver lining for procrastinators. They CAN change. It just takes a willingness on the part of the person to recognize this destructive behavior and correct it. It’s not overnight, however, and may require a trained professional to assist them. So, if you are a procrastinator, evaluate what you are doing. If you know one, gently get them some help.
We all need to be prepared for emergencies, and we simply can’t wait until tomorrow to do it. Please, for everyone’s sake, start now. Buy a gym bag for your car. It’s a start.
For more tips on getting ready for emergencies, use the simple step-by-step method at prepare.fullerton.edu/GSOMsgs.htm.
References:
(1) http://www.webmd.com/balance/guide/20070201/why-procrastinate
(2) http://www.psychologytoday.com/articles/200507/why-we-procrastinate

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

Great ShakeOut a Winner!

I had originally planned to be gone the entire week after the Great ShakeOut.  Sure, I was exhausted from doing things WAY over the top for this event, but I really figured that we needed it to do it right.  I think the results prove me correct.

Yesterday I was gone as planned, playing in a golf tournament.  I play with the same bunch of ladies every year.  Every year, the day after the tournament, I swear that I will get those clubs out more often and sharpen my game.  Unfortunately for my teammates, the last time I played was, well, in last year’s tournament.  Thankfully for me, they are good sports and a lot of fun, so we laugh and have a good time even with those bad shots.  By some miracle this year, we actually placed first in our division.  My contributions were small, but apparently enough to win a $45 gift certificate at Trader Joe’s.  Which I would entirely use on milk chocolate covered peanuts if they carried them anymore.  Which they don’t.  They only carry dark chocolate covered peanuts, and I love dark chocolate, but some perfectly good flavors just don’t match.  Like these.

Today was to have been my first of a 4 day training on how to design exercises for emergency responses drills.  I think after last week’s affair, I could say that I hardly need such information now...  But I also know the minute you think you know it all is when you probably know not nearly enough.  So I went.  All the way to south county to a remote location to the Orange County Emergency Operations Center. 

It is not an easy place to get to, incidentally.  Well, at least not the first time.  The first time I tried to get there, I loaded the address into the GPS and away I went.  I drove along and saw my little dot approach the location marked on the map, but as I got close to the dot I saw nothing.  Just lovely, rolling hills filled with cacti and grass and trees.  Hmm... must be the wrong address, so I kept going.  I ignored the GPS’s “you have passed the location.  Make a U-turn as soon as it is possible.”  Ha!  Stupid GPS, it must be further ahead.  Twelve miles later I reluctantly made that U-turn and started back.  As I approached that dot again, it would again say, “Destination on the left,” at which time I would look left and see cacti and grass and trees.  This I did 3 times until I noticed a small road with an “Authorized Vehicles Only” sign.  Well, to make this really long story short, that was it.

So, today, I drove to this highly hidden place and got through the two security gates before ending up at the front desk.

“I’m here for the training.”
“Is that the CSTI one?”
“Yes.”
“Oh, sorry, that got cancelled.  Didn’t you get a phone call?”
“Why, yes, I did.  I just didn’t believe it.  You can never believe what you hear on the phone.  I decided that I needed to drive all the way out here to be told that this was cancelled in person...”

Sigh...  So I am back on campus this week and selecting the winners to the “I Am Prepared” contest.  What great entries!  Winners will be announced on the prepare.fullerton.edu website at noon, Wednesday, October 27.  Stay tuned!

Saturday, October 16, 2010

Welcome!

I find it ironic and amusing that while I am ordinarily a pretty optimistic person, it has become my job to think of the worst case scenario every day I come to work.

So to make this a topic easier in which to get other people interested and honestly more fun for me, I have infused Emergency Preparedness with my own personality and have hopefully made it easier and more enjoyable to "be prepared."

Don't get me wrong. The road to preparing for disasters IS a serious one. But it doesn't hurt to laugh along the way.
Enjoy.