Attention Kate:
It is time once again to make the usual hurricane preps. This year, for the first time, we are planning on evacuating rather than riding it out. The levees still are nowhere near rebuilt, the city utilities are still distinctly fragile, and dh is retired, so there is no longer any requirement to stay at his desk until the last possible minute. This means that instead of stocking up on supplies, cooking and baking two weeks worth of food etc. we are planning to leave ahead of the crowd if a major storm enters the Gulf. So, we all know you take a machine with you whenever you go away, but I would appreciate details of precisely what else you put in the car along with it. For instance, how many and what kind of scissors, rulers, pins etc.? What else is vital and what is superfluous on a weekend trip? (Most evacuations are for about three days, unless the hurricane actually hits as Katrina did). Remember, in the car as well as clothes we will also be carrying important papers, quite possibly old family photos etc.
A detailed list of essentials would be appreciated.
Olwyn Mary in (vulnerable, fragile, but still fighting back) New Orleans.