OK, I'm back up and running now. I've got running water (and a boil order, but at least I can bathe), electricity (cold food! laundry!), phone and internet.
As I disgustedly tossed out a few items, I thought "Other people should know these items SUCK". Other items were quite useful and bear mentioning
The good
1. RCA Pearl MP3 player. Excellent tunes for the worst of the storm, AND an excellent FM reciever. As I discarded 2 radios that either got lousy reception, or ate batteries for breakfast, I was consistently impressed with the excellent quality of my MP3 player.
2. Rayovac Heavy Duty and Alkaline brand batteries. They lasted forever and were well worth the money spent. I was very impressed with their performance in my LED lantern, I didn't have to change the batteries for 4 days.
3. Discovery brand 1 led lantern. It cost less than $10 at the camping store. It runs on 4 D cell batteries and it was very efficient. I was able to knit by its' light when it was pitch black outside.
4. Dynamo wind up lantern and 2 flashlights. I got these years ago and they performed quite well. It was very handy to use them, just pick it up, wind, and turn it on. Since they run on "elbow grease" I didn't have to worry about using up my batteries. By the time a few days had passed, I was preferentially using these to my battery operated models.
5. Frozen 2 liter bottles of tap water. These worked great! They were still icy 1 day after all my ice cubes melted. Easy and virtually free. Save some empty 2 liter bottles, fill with water, and freeze.
6. Contractor garbage bags. I could have used them in many ways. I had a cracked 5 gallon bucket, for instance. I was able to use a contractor bag to line it, saving 5 gallons of water. Also very handy for debris pickup.
7. Bleach. I need this to sanitize my water, which is not drinkable. I am using it to make a sanitizer bath for the dishes after I wash them. If we'd had flood damage, I'd use it to mop.
8. Extra cat food. Boy, I'd have been screwed if I'd forgotten. It was nice to look at the empty food bowl this morning and know I had plenty more.
9. Ice chest - Rubbermaid, excellent. Kept everything frosty. It has a retractable handle and two wheels. Easy to use and does the job well. I am happy I spent $30 or so on it, it paid off.
The Ugly
It's not the fault of the items, but I just didn't like them.
1. Pretty much any small, battery operated radio (save the one in my MP3 player). They were a huge hassle and ate up batteries at an alarming rate.
2. Dorcy 4 D lamp. It blinded me when I'd turn it on and I could never get the light to fall where I needed it. They ate batteries about twice as fast as my LED lamp. I'm not throwing them out but I'm never buying another one and I don't reccomend them.
3. Battery operated TV. Oh, this was the most annoying. It didn't tune properly. It ate batteries at an alarming rate. Even the FM tuner was lousy. Save your money; or better yet, put it towards an RCA Pearl MP3 player. It has a great tuner.
4. Foam ice chest. Leaked water all over my floor. AGGGH.
I'm Buying These:
1. Plastic egg case for "camping". My paper egg crates began collapsing from the melting ice. Very messy. I am getting some of these egg things. I saw them but I didn't see why they'd be useful. Now, I know.
2. Plastic sheeting. If we'd had roof damage, I'd want this.
That's it for now! I'll do some food reviews later, too.
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