The weather in the Atlanta Georgia area, subsequent traffic problems, the finger pointing about who is to blame and how things could have been done better have been in the news and got me thinking about stuff. What about some common sense and self-reliance? I guess as a Mainer in our mostly rural state with weather lurking for months at a time this is a little more natural to some of us.

Let’s face it; common sense is just not that common. One big mistake was sending out the message to head home and then LOTS OF PEOPLE did…at the same time. Overall, there are one million people that live in Atlanta and six million in the Atlanta area, so the wizard who made that decision did not really think that one through.

In a situation like that, each of us needs to take a deep breath and examine the situation and see if waiting a while might work better. At the very least, you are still where ever you were and not on the road. But if you can’t leave OR your have to leave, then what? Well, if there is a threat of weather that might impact your life make sure you have some supplies to take care of yourself. What might you need IF you got stuck at the office, school, or on the road? Just toss the stuff you may need in your car or where you can get it and if you need it, you are set. If not, no harm.

Currently, I live and work in the same city and it is only about half a mile between the two, so it not as big of a worry to be ready to be trapped at work. But when I lived in Yarmouth and worked in Augusta, you can be darn sure my office was all ready to become my home away from home. I mean everything. Air mattress, sleeping bag, snacks/food, toiletries and I would always have extra clothes in my car.  All that stuff was very handy in many emergency and no-emergency situations. When I lived in Yarmouth, if there was a storm, I would often stay in Augusta in my office.  On storm days it is even more important to get to the radio station and make sure you know about the dangers, the cancellation and the weather.  Heck, I would even bring my dog and let him hang out in my office or the car.  At least I knew where he was and I could attend to his needs at well.  The dog and I would share some takeout food and make a little party out of it. Less stressful, safer and kind of fun!

I challenge you to stop and think about the ‘what ifs’ of your daily life? Do you have some sort of backup plan for different situations? No matter where you live or what your situation is, I think it worth a little extra time to make sure you can take care of you. Need some help, Google it, you will find TONS of info.

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