...Take a minute to write down what you learned from this short disruption of your daily life. It sound like communication was a big one.
Having a generator would have been nice. However, every time I save up enough to get the one I want... I end up getting something else (more food, ammo, etc.) As much as a comfort as it would be, a generator is not a priority on my budget.
I have a "smart" phone but the car charger is broke... so I hesitated to search the web for info. I did make a quick call to a friend outside of the city and had them look up the news on the web and call me back with a quick report. If push came to shove, I could have used my small 12vdc > 120vac inverter + wall charger to charge my phone in my vehicle.
On a side note:
I don't talk about it much on here, but I'm big into CB/11 meter free band. I have more than enough equipment, and know how, for top notch base and mobile radio rigs. However, I took the radio out of my vehicle shortly after I moved here because I didn't want my window smashed by some crack-head that might get $20 from a pawn shop for my $900+ worth of mobile radio equipment. Also I have not bothered to set up a base station because I know that as soon as I start to transmit in this densely packed area, all of my neighbors are going to start bitching about interference. I'll eventually get around to setting up a homemade hidden antenna. The irony is that this homemade job will likely cause MORE interference due to its less-than-desirable radiation pattern... but at least they won't know were it's coming from *insert trollface*. You ask: "What good is all this going to do if the power is down and you don't have a generator?" The answer is simple: I connect my hidden base antenna to my mobile rig. I can run at minimum power from just the battery AND/OR start the engine for an extra 90+/- amps if higher power is needed.
