Updated: Oct 1, 2019
June 24, 2015
I’m looking at our world in a brand new way this year. Life is fragile, and we are part of that fragile fabric. Aware of the ephemeral, I decided to gift my family with the first step in a survival kit. Ever since, I’ve been watching the small habits and charming humor in the people around me. I’ve been smelling the morning, greeting the raccoon and the chickadees, really studying the texture, the light and the shadows in places that I often take for granted.
I’ve had some readers comment that they don’t want to be around after the apocalypse, (or after the Great Subduction Zone Earthquake).
I understand that feeling. Recovery is work, and fear, and discovered loss. Loss would make recovery seem like shoving one foot in front of the other, even though we also might, at the same time, discover people and things that have not been lost.
But I have a list of what I want to be around for – people, places and ideas I want to assist in recovery, if I’m still here.
Of course, family is the beginning of that list: Woody, my resilient and positive husband, our wonderful kids, grandkids, brothers and sisters, all the in-laws and out. And then friends, my great, close and wise friends. Kids I’ve taught and get a kick out of because of their humor, their imaginations and their energy.
I would hope to find all these people, though some may be missing. Together, we survivors could rebuild our world, create support, maybe even improve our community, over time.
And I would look for my neighbors, some of whom already are friends, and some who might become better friends if we have to rely on each other.
And I will want to see what flowers arise from the ashes during the next spring. Fireweed and pine trees open first after forest fires. What will grow through our broken concrete? I want to be as strong and persistent as those flowers.
Some folks who’ve insisted they don’t want to be around afterward also discuss the innate savagery of people following a disaster. Yes, we all have that capacity. Indeed we do. But we all also have the capability for mutual building. I want to be here to help encourage the building.
Is this blog a downer? I’m thinking here about the people I appreciate, believe in, and with whom I want to recover. You’ve got that list inside of you as well.
So, let’s plan and get ready for the next event, whether the event is bugs in our water or the earth moving under our feet. Here are some photos of things I’ll watch for and nurture afterward.
Next issue of Rae: Always Asking will be about cooking after the big event. Tune in and see what I’m learning and what resources I’m finding.
Originally published in 2015; republished in 2019.
BEFORE YOU BUY this recommended pump, read the follow-up essay. We learned later that this pump had BIG drawbacks, but I leave this tale so you can follow us as we stumble into good things and not so good things for our survival kit.
Onward in our quest to outfit the family in case of water problems in Portland (like the e-coli scare of last year) or in case the Pacific Subduction Zone decides to make a move on us.
As you may have read in our previous installment, Family Ready for the Big One?, we bought our water barrel from Alberto at Myers Containers.
Next, we needed a pump to siphon the water out of the barrel when disaster arose. Woody and I have a mechanical pump of the old farm-home type. We’ve set it up in a barrel pond at our home. The grandkids and I enjoy playing with it on a sunny day, but its pipe is bigger than the opening in the plastic water barrel.
Besides, for our family Christmas, we needed five pumps for our five families.
Myers Containers doesn’t sell pumps, but when it came time to buy one, Alberto brought in his colleague, George, who had studied the pump situation.
I asked George about the pumps I had seen online. They were plastic versions of the old pump handle seen in the farms of our grandmothers.
George told us he had once ordered a pump of the type I described from the mid-western company that I had found online.
“What you don’t want is to rely on something with plastic parts in an emergency. I had that type and within two weeks it broke.”
So, what do we want?
“Pick up a metal pump that works on the wheel mechanism instead of the siphon being created by the rise of the handle. I think you can get one at a really good hardware store, and it will save you the cost of shipping.”
We went to True Value’s Parkrose Hardware at N.E. 106th and Sandy Boulevard. And there we found exactly what George described to us.
The price was the same as the online order for plastic, about $65.
We were going to save time and big shipping costs. Plus, because we ordered five, Parkrose Hardware gave us a discount. We got the Ironton Rotary Hand Pump, item # 37903.
It is made with a cast iron casing and three sections, totaling 38 inches of telescoping suction pipe. The impeller (the rotary thing) is made of carbonized resin. I expect to have this pump in action for a long time.
It turns out that the wheel mechanism gives you a continuous flow of about a quart every three cranks. The flow can be controlled by speeding up or slowing down.
That’s an improvement over the farm pump that delivers a whooshing splash after a good deal of priming each time you use it.
Thus, I won’t be breaking my arm to get at the water I’m storing in our Big Blue barrel.
Here is a photo of Iron Ton, being tested in the kitchen sink. (Did you think I’d test it in the driveway at today’s 36 degrees?)
And here is our Big Blue in his new home on the north side of the house. We decided against storing in the garage because we have not yet cleaned a nice place for him there. Maybe next summer when we empty and refill him, he’ll have indoor shelter.
Next? Guess what? It matters what hose you use to put water in the barrel. Who knew there’d be so much to learn in this quest for an emergency kit?
Tooon In.
To see what we learned about our new and not so wonderful pump, go to "Hold the Hose" and for hose info, go to "The Truth about Garden Hoses".
and https://www.raerichen.com/post/the-truth-about-garden-hoses .
Originally published in 2014. Republished 2019.
(And the small ones too)
Our Pacific Northwest’s big earthquake hasn’t happened yet, but it could happen any time.
Geologists have been expecting the big one and have been trying to warn us for quite long enough.
We should all be aware of the Subduction Zone facts.
Enough of passive information gathering. Want to get ready?
Join me as I help my extended family, and you all, get ready for that predicted event, or any smaller events between now and the #9 earth moving that is predicted.
I’ve begun planning and collecting. And, due to the recent Ecoli shut-down of our water supply, I’m sure my kit will have uses between now and the big bowling event. Unlike Rip Van Winkle, I plan not to be caught napping.
I know you also will have great ideas about what to get, where to get it and how to store it. So, please share your ideas about getting ready as we go down this road toward readiness and safety.
Our family is extended, but most of us live in the greater Portland area. We need to plan together, but also plan separately. We don’t live close enough to assume we can get to each other in a crisis.
Thus, we realized that each family unit would need its own equipment. And we can add to these collections as we can afford to do so. The first questions is what do we each need? And to begin, what do we need the most?
We humans are 60% water, so Water tops that Needs Most list.
The recommended water storage is 3 gallons a day per person for at least five days. I hunted over the area for water storage and found that most in the know recommend plastic 55 gallon drums. First problem, who sells these?
Online, I found many container stores. I called a hootin’ lot of them, and discovered that:
1) Some were out of business
2) Some didn’t deal with small fry like me and
3) Some couldn’t answer my questions about what I needed.
But one store understood what I was trying to do, and took the time to answer.
That one place was Myers Containers at 8435 Northeast Killingsworth Street, Portland, OR, 1-800 406-9377.
When I called, I was transferred right away to Alberto.
He told me they had just what I was looking for.
I drove out there and looked at the product. I ordered five.
They are sturdy, have strong plug-ins on top and are a good price at $65. This amounts to all of Christmas for each family, but what do you do when you love folks? You help them get ready. Right? I hope you and yours are following in my footsteps.
I’ll make big tracks, just for you, my friends.
We took the tree-farm truck to Myers, met Alberto and Jesus, who helped us plunk four containers into the truck—a perfect fit. We’ll go back after the fifth one next week.
Next blog entry, I’ll show you how we’re going to get all that water out of the 55 gallon drums when we need it.
Mechanical pumps, here we come!
Post Script:
In my previous discussion, (June 2, 2013) I mentioned resources we all can use:
Phone: 503-823-4375, Fax: 503-823-3903, TDD: 503-823-3947
These sites have lists that have been thoughtfully worked out by people who practice emergency response.
Another resource is available – your neighborhood preparedness volunteers.
My friend, Ruth Jones has joined the Neighborhood Emergency Team (NET) program. It is her volunteer job to attend preparedness sessions and to make information she gets available to her neighbors.
I got into this project because of Ruth’s presentation at a neighborhood brown bag lunch. She remains a source for us. You can call 503-823-4375 or go online at http://www.portlandoregon.gov/pbem/31667 to find out how your neighbors can be ready for any type of emergency.
