Go Bag Mistakes

On It · ‎03-15-2021

We always have our go bags ready. There is a list on line if you need help preparing one. I made two mistakes in my preparation. I packed the minimum number of items of clothing. You need more if you have space.

The second mistake I made was not updating the contents. At home I live in D&C Beach pants. I only had some Old Navy bottoms and a top for lounging. I was uncomfortable after being spoiled to the feel of my beach pants. I corrected that when we got back to the mountain. Good news, They are now on sale. It is a good time to try them if you want.

Do not wait to gather your go bag. Many people in our village were evacuated with no time to collect anything. The wind brought the fire faster than you can imagine straight into densely populated areas. Some that evacuated only had the clothes they were wearing. There is no time to waste when you are running for your life.

Travone · ‎10-14-2016

Good advice @On It

Thanks

Happy2BHere · ‎10-22-2019

Thanks for helping others have a go bag plan, because you never know when you have to head out!

We have to have a go bag ready down here in FL when it gets busy during hurricane season - we watch any storm that is headed our way just in case we have to leave. Then the only thing left for us to do is PRAY lol!

FancyPhillyshopper · ‎05-02-2017

Gosh, if I had to live in a place where I needed a "GO" bag, I would just have to move!

I have many pets--how could I ever get them together, and also worry about what clothes to bring? I have lots of gorgeous clothes that I would not want to abandon.

My jewelry and some other valuable possesions would also have priority. What about antique furniture? Family photos? Important paperwork?

Thank goodness there is a fire hydrant right outside our house, our electric company fixes outages within a few hours, our city has full-time professional police, firefighters, EMTs, etc., and we have many world-class hospitals nearby.

Some folks have second homes in the mountains north of our city, and they purchase generators if the power goes out. Even that is too remote for me!

RollTide2008 · ‎02-14-2017

I'm not in a part of the country that generally gets the kind of weather that requires a go bag, but I do live in a downtown high rise. We practice getting the cats into their carriers and getting out of the building with them on a regular basis.

jlkz · ‎12-02-2013

@FancyPhillyshopper

Years ago we had a different lifestyle so I can appreciate your comments on gorgeous clothing. As for the jewelry, I started to give it to those I wanted to have it while I could enjoy seeing them wear it and enjoy it. Now I wear the same pieces everyday...they are my favorites and have the most meaning to me.

A few exceptional pieces are in a bank box where I can retrieve them for a special occasion.

As for all the non living items you mentioned, perhaps for peace of mind you might want to look into temperature-controlled storage.

No one knows what can happen: if you need to evacuate for any reason to save your and your pets lives, it's better to have your bare necessities ready to grab and go. Stuff can be replaced but lives cannot.

May we never have to find out !

We make a living by what we get. We make a life by what we give.
Sir Winston Churchill

FancyPhillyshopper · ‎05-02-2017

@jlkz wrote:
@FancyPhillyshopper

Years ago we had a different lifestyle so I can appreciate your comments on gorgeous clothing. As for the jewelry, I started to give it to those I wanted to have it while I could enjoy seeing them wear it and enjoy it. Now I wear the same pieces everyday...they are my favorites and have the most meaning to me.

A few exceptional pieces are in a bank box where I can retrieve them for a special occasion.

As for all the non living items you mentioned, perhaps for peace of mind you might want to look into temperature-controlled storage.

No one knows what can happen: if you need to evacuate for any reason to save your and your pets lives, it's better to have your bare necessities ready to grab and go. Stuff can be replaced but lives cannot.

May we never have to find out !

I guess I am just not going to be able to consider that way of living. We do not have the mindset to flee--rather we would try to stay and preserve our homes and neighborhoods.

My house is over 125 years old--solid stone.

The house at the end of my street has been there since the late 1600's.

At the outskirts of my neighborhood is the house George Washington lived in during the late 1700's.

A battle in the Revolutionary War was fought in a house called Cliveden--you can still see the bullet holes in the house, and they often reenact this battle.

There is also a house called Wyck where the same (Quaker) family lived there from 1690-1973, --it still has its original rose garden, many of the original furnishings, etc., all passed down.

When I travel to Europe I see some homes that the same family has owned and lived in for almost a thousand years.

Up in Salem, Massachusetts I love visiting the House of the Seven Gables, and there are B & B's that go back to the 1600s with all the original furnishings.

It is up to people to maintain and preserve all this wonderful and important history and architecture.

I do not want to live where I have to plan to evacuate.

Sorry, we will never have a "Go" bag, and no need for a temperature controlled storage (?!) if all the electricity in the city fails. We will have to go back to ice chests in the basement (ha ha), and the wood burning stove!