Keeping all of Florida in my thoughts & prayers. I am following this thread with hopes that all of you stay safe.

It is interesting to me to see what preparations are made and how our minds work in planning. Women do have the upper hand on this IMO.

I appreciate the bleach link. I had saved that from an old magazine ad. Your link states that bleach should be renewed every four months so was glad to learn that as well.

I am a bit inland from the Texas coast but we have had a few hurricanes come through this area, wreaking havoc but nowhere near the destruction those closer to the coast receive. One customer had told me of all his kin that came to stay with him during one hurricane. He had a two story house and worried in the dark that someone would fall on the stairs. He did the outside solar lights, putting them back outdoors to recharge during daytime. There are so many ways to maintain our sanity during stressful times.

My husband took a car battery and set it on a tray and connected a power convertor to it. We could plug in an oscillating fan, radio or other small appliances to it. It worked well for a few days before needing recharging.

I collect rainwater for my plants and we would wash up with rainwater. Just be careful with how much soap is used for hair as rainwater is so soft it doesn't rinse the soap very well.

Once again, keeping you all in my prayers. Stay safe!

Ann I would say you are well prepared Holy cow! Never would have thought of half of what you mentioned!
Pam - just what kind of men is it raining - hmmmmmm could be interesting

I watched the TV news coverage for Irma and the track and intensity both are bad news. Stay safe!!

Yes, all of you, stay safe! I have a friend who lives on the French side of St Martin. I'm really worried about her. I'm hoping she has flown elsewhere and is not at home on her island.

Folks, I appreciate everyone's input ... but we are living it. It looks like Irma is trying to give us all ulcers! Right now it look to be making landfall south of Miami and exiting just north of Palm Beach. That's the latest. I've wanted to stay, but the current scenario scares me. The problem is that the highways will be clogged with people fleeing from Miami to Palm Beach. And we don't know exactly how much the path of the hurricane will change from the next round of fly-overs. This is flipping insane!!

I'm making chili to freeze and also making granola that can be eaten out of the container. This afternoon I'll start moving potted plants around.

The news pictures of those little Islands it has already hit look so bad. Too scary for me, I can't see how anyone can stay thru that.

pod said:My husband took a car battery and set it on a tray and connected a power convertor to it. We could plug in an oscillating fan, radio or other small appliances to it. It worked well for a few days before needing recharging.

Kristi! Great minds think alike.
We have an entire "kit" in a rubbermaid container with fans & lights that work the same way. All ours plug into cigarette lighter sockets which are attached by wires to the battery. We used to have a deep crank marine battery that we kept charged for such an occasion. We lived in Hobe Sound, right on the coast, before moving up here & the carport was located such that we could run the wires directly off the car battery & in the carport door into the house. Then the marine battery was for "back up". You just run the car to recharge the car battery. The set up works great! You can go to the auto parts store & get those fans that truckers use & everything else you need to set up the system.
That was before we got the little generator.
Here, we would need longer wires or keep ourselves confined to the kitchen/dining for the duration. This is a larger house. Speaking of Hobe Sound, if we hadn't moved, you can bet we would have evacuated yesterday!!!! Even though we built the house there with our own hands & made sure it was twice as strong as building codes enacted after Andrew, THIS hurricane is nothing to sneeze at and is indeed catastrophic! I'm sure the house down there would hold up but there's not a chance in hades that I would want to go through a direct hit from it. Frances, Jean & Wilma were the last for us. Enough!

Ginny....they would be Tall, blonde, dark and lean......Rough and tough and strong and mean

I agree Rita, and when they hit the islands with mountains, could be brutal.

@plantmanager Karen, my thoughts are with your friend & surely hope she stayed away & is somewhere safe & sound!

@Gardenglory Pam, I thought FL had passed a law years ago after Frances & Jean that gas stations with X # of pumps (I think 3) were required to have generators to pump the gas when the electric goes out.

At this point in time, the track is looking better for FL but not safe just yet & woe be unto states north of us. HOWEVER, as the old saying goes..... it ain't over till the fat lady sings. We have a long ways to go yet & the forecast track & intensity can change & change & change again. Yes, this is the maddening part of hurricanes, wrecking days of your lives before you ever actually have to deal with the beast itself IF you end up having to deal with it at all. Stress!

Newyorkrita said:The news pictures of those little Islands it has already hit look so bad. Too scary for me, I can't see how anyone can stay thru that.

There are pictures coming out of there already??? I haven't had a chance to see yet since we went right into lunch after arriving home.

gardenglory said:Ginny....they would be Tall, blonde, dark and lean......Rough and tough and strong and mean

I agree Rita, and when they hit the islands with mountains, could be brutal.

Have to add a little humor where we can.

This hurricane is getting a lot of warm filled air on water, so it will be carrying intense rainfall. I do hope those going to ride out this hurricane at home will have some flotation device to use/to ride on if in case the waters rise too fast.

Good one Pam!

I'll take two, er, 3, er, maybe I should order 4 of them.

Ann I'm sure you'll need at least 5 - just to be safe

flaflwrgrl said:

There are pictures coming out of there already??? I haven't had a chance to see yet since we went right into lunch after arriving home.

At at noon news I saw some coverage of the storm at some island down there that I never heard of. I think someones cell phone video that he sent over. Then there was the standard of lots of waves and wind.

@plantladylin, try to look around too if there is another house at least 2 story high, just as plan B in case water rises faster. It is good your sister's place is a cement block house, but when storm surge comes in, your only safety is to get as high as you can. It only takes minutes for water to rise with this type of very strong hurricane.

Looking at Irma's rotating satellite view, oh, those outerbands looks so heavy with rain, really very ominously dangerous.

Ann

I am impressed about how well you are prepared. Many can learn a lessen from you, myself included, not that we are ever going to get a hurricane in this dry place. ( just as well)

Linda you might get a dust storm

Tiny ones sometimes...