Quote:
Originally Posted by bjones6416
Well, then you'll appreciate this story! 
YEARS after my father died, my mother and I decided to clean out the bottom of his gun cabinet. A local gun shop had agreed to dispose of the old ammo and various boxes of stuff he had in there. My father dabbled in almost everything, and one of those things was muzzle-loading. (Do you know where this is going?)
Anyway, we blithely loaded up a bunch of boxes of stuff into the trunk of the car and headed off to the gun store, across hill and dale and bumpy railroad tracks...
When the owner of the shop started getting the boxes out of the car the color actually drained out of his face. Apparently there was a fairly large quantity of very old, and not very well stored, black powder in there. 
They transported it carefully to the range, and blew it up for us. Who knew that stuff got so unstable when it gets damp/old? (Okay, probably you knew!) |
I have seen and heard all sorts of crazy anecdotes about the stuff that comes out of gun collections. my Uncle once bought a rifle that still had a load in it from the civil war...
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ralph Sir Edward
Not smokeless power?
Mel Tappan's Survival Guns goes PD in Canada in 2031...
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it gets the barrel REALLY gummy!
Quote:
Originally Posted by nikkie
I grew up in the country (ish), and we would never have worried about a week without power. My family had a wood-burning stove that (back then) we stocked wood for every fall because it was cheaper than paying a heating bill. So if the power was out, you tried not to open the fridge too much, ate the perishables first, and lit the fireplace. It was like a snowy holiday usually. With candlelight.
Now I live in the city in an apartment building; and I've never prepared for anything. No stove, grill, etc. I expect I'd probably just walk to Safeway (across the street) if I ran out of things that didn't need to be cooked. I don't have anything in my car for emergencies other than a blanket...after all I have a cell phone. If something went wrong I'd just call the tow truck to come pick me up.
I think the biggest worry about a week without power (and lots of snow) at this point would be a lack of a.) being able to get to work b.) being able to do anything at work (I'm a programmmer...) and c.) being able to use the internet!! Also my iRex dies every two weeks whether it's on or off, so who knows whether or not it would have any power, since I know my iphone would be dead in a day.
I live in the same neck of the woods as kindlekitten; should be interesting. The last time a big la nina was forecast we had four feet of snow where I lived at the time.
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that's what I'n talking about! also I tend to be in a LOT of places where my cell phone doesn't work and/or waiting on a tow truck might be synonymous with waiting on death!
Quote:
Originally Posted by bjones6416
Now see, that's the problem when we have an ice storm around here: the Safeway wouldn't have power either, and wouldn't be open. The tow trucks can't get to you because the road isn't cleared. Cell phone works until you need to charge it again, then it's no good. Even in the city, or maybe especially in the city, it doesn't hurt to be a little bit prepared. |
I think most places around here have back-up generators. it is THAT common to lose power here
Quote:
Originally Posted by SameOldStory
I've read several places that in the major cities we have about a 3 day supply of food available. Here's the Congressional Record for what it's worth.
*SNIP*. |
I'm not sure what the supply is, I am sure I am not going to rely on other entities to keep me fed and comfy!
I used to have a flier from the State of New Mexico Agricultural Department (I'm sure other states do it as well, I just happened to have theirs) that was an essential pantry list. it covered dried legumes, rice, oils, etc. etc. it was a very comprehensive list... maybe I will search it out