Are You Prepared for a Blizzard?

What a storm! It put a damper on our travel plans, but I was so grateful to be safe and sound at home. Over the years I have tried to make sure my household had a level of preparedness for anything, but I have to admit that I was woefully unprepared this time around.

My refrigerator had the leftovers of Christmas and all the goodies I was supposed to take to our extended family celebration. I had our favorite sweet potato dish to feed twenty people. I also had salad fixings for that same number. I always make an apple crisp, so I have apples coming out the wazoo.

Milk, bread and other staples were still there but I had no bottled water and very few canned goods.

I can tell the kids are getting older because I did not have any AA or D batteries. Typically, Christmas time is the one time when I am loaded with batteries for toys or games! As a quirky twist of fate, I had picked up keychain LED flashlights at Home Depot as a stocking stuffer. Other than those, I only had one working flashlight. I had four pillar candles, two tapers and precisely three tea lights left. I had two logs for the fireplace after Christmas Eve and Christmas Day fires.

As the snow swirled and the inches piled up, I became increasingly concerned as I saw these pops of light from a transformer up on a power pole.

The next day, after the snow had stopped and we had finished digging out, we did lose power. As the house started to get cold and there were no Con Ed trucks in sight, I went out to gather some things to get us through the night. I picked up a jumbo pack of hand warmers, a jumbo pack of LED candles, lots of unscented candles, firewood and something to heat on the stove for dinner.

I illuminated the house with candles and everything glowed. Even though the wind was whipping, the house had not dropped below 60 degrees so it was fine.

I whipped up a huge pasta dinner that, according to my husband, managed to involve every pot in the kitchen. The celiacs had Tinkyada shells and the regulars had sausage and cheese raviolis that I had picked up in my shopping adventure. We grabbed some of the lettuce from the fridge and placed the milk and some juice into a snow bank right outside the back door so that we could keep the refrigerator closed.

All in all, it was a pretty cozy few hours. My blackberry was dead, my daughter’s iTouch was dead, the wireless was down, the celiac’s cell phone went dead…so we just hung out. As we were about to fire up an Uno game, we heard the big Con Ed cherry picker rumble down the street. Power was restored and we were back in business!

To me, this was a wake-up call. We are so wired and in constant communication that it’s easy to forget that when the power goes down, those little devices aren’t going to get you through an emergency. You have to actually take time to prepare. It’s time to stock up on canned goods, long shelf life GF food, batteries, bottled water and grab some of those LED candles too!

Something tells me it’s going to be a very long winter.
Kendall Egan

Gluten-free packing in face of emergency

If you had to pack for an emergency evacuation, what would you put in your suitcase?

Nearly 2 million Louisiana residents had to make that decision this past weekend when they were asked to leave home as Gustav barrelled toward them like teenage hot-rodder on an open road. Fortunately, the hurricane slowed down and veered away from still-healing New Orleans. While it did cause some damage, most people will return to all the comforts and contents of their homes.

But no one knew that when it was time to choose what to take on the one-way route out of town. Important papers were surely packed, along with medicine and money and enough clothes to keep a person decent. Perhaps computers with needed files, and old photographs, and precious artwork done by children got loaded into the car before a last look and a quick good by. If I had to choose, I would look for the things that are irreplaceable - old letters from my husband, cards sent by my grandparents, funny notes scribbled by my kids, and video tapes of their early years.

At least with Gustav there was time to think about what to take. When Hurricane Katrina hit almost exactly three years ago, evacuation was a matter of life and death and there was no time for many people to gather belongings. This time, having learned from Katrina's mistakes, city and state officials made it clear everyone should think ahead, pack up and go.


But what about gluten-free food for those who follow the gluten-free diet? Would it merit such valuable cargo space?


Soon after Katrina, we ran a story about emergency preparedness in Gluten-Free Living. The main point was that gluten-free disaster planning is pretty similar to regular disaster preparation. Experts recommend having on hand basic survival items that will last three days, including water, non-perishable food that requires no cooking, a manual can opener, ready-to-eat canned meats, fruits and vegetables, peanut butter, crackers, and protein or fruit bars. For more information go to http://www.americanredcross.org/ or http://www.fema.gov/.


Just make sure all the items you stockpile are gluten free. If you ever have to leave home on short notice, you'll have everything you need to get you through a few days. And you won't have to worry whether there will be any gluten-free food options on the road. Even if you never face a natural disaster, an emergency food supply can come in handy if power in your home and community is out for a few days.


I'm thankful New Orleans was largely spared, mindful some people in Louisiana did suffer damage to their homes and optimistic repairs will be rapid this time.


But hurricane season is just beginning -- Hanna is already lurking near the Bahamas and expected to hit the Southeastern coast by midweek -- so it makes sense to stockpile gluten-free essentials and think about what valuables you would pack if you had to choose.


Amy