We always "stock up" in the fall, in case of bad weather, power outages, etc. We're 20 miles from a real supermarket or drugstore, so we like to have stuff on hand in case we don't get to town for a couple of weeks.

Now we're thinking H1N1...the recommendations are changing all the time, but Bob has COPD, so I'm being a little more cautious than usual. We're thinking that if word comes that the flu is breaking out locally, we might just hunker down for a while and not go to stores and such.

You should see my shopping list!

Hunkering down sounds like a smart move to me. It is pretty difficult to get the season's illnesses when you aren't around others.

gmi

i know exactly how you feel. We too live many miles from the closest lil grocery, and its badly stocked, and tons of expired stuff on the shelf. It will do for a quick milk run, but for real food we need to go 35 miles up the road. Since we live way out in the backwoods, and power outages and such are common in snow filled NH we are well stocked. The generator is a God send, and I never dreamed a house with a generator hook up was a neccesity.

If you have to go out, DONT TOUCH YOUR FACE! bring disinfectant wipes with you, and wash the handle of the buggy. Wipe the front seat of the basket, and you can use those plastic produce bags inside out over your hands as temp gloves while in the store. it will prevent you from touching that stuff. Use a new wipe to wash your hands before touching your steering wheel, or inside of your car.

Our house if fully stocked. I have already been canning, and freezing. we have a large stock pile of TP and paper towels. shampoo, and deodorant, and powders, soaps and laundry detergent. The freezer is rammed full, and the downstairs freezer is freshly washed and ready for a new batch of venison, beef, chickens, and so forth. I wash it out once a year and ready it for the new stuff to come in. We have a months worth of water that equals one gallon, per person, per day stocked piled. We live almost off the grid, so if the power goes out, or there is an emergency we will be the last ones they service.

There is nothing like living in the harsh back woods to keep you prepared. My first year here, I was so unprepared, and it made things so much worse to have to trudge out in 10 feet of snow for shampoo. I wont do that again. We can easily live for 3 months off of the food supply in this place. I am glad to know I am not the only one that gets prepared early, and stocks it high.

We're working on the same project here.

We got in five cords of wood to add to the cord we have left over from last season, made an appointment to have the generator serviced, and will be mowing the lawn for the last time this year!

I hate winter. There's just so much to do every year and regardless of what you get done, it seems the next year there is still stuff to do to improve heat retention, fix what needs repair and carry off the junk that results from said repairs!

I've started adding to the weekly shopping list, just a few things to stockpile in case of an extended period of snow, ice, flood, etc. I learned what I would and wouldn't need after the ice storm in 1998 and keep everything pretty well stocked now!

I even have crazy things like powdered milk in case we run out, and cannot make it to the store. If it sits on the shelf long enough to reach its expiration date, I use it in my bath as a nice soak.

The garden is exhausted with the exception of a few zuchinni, and some eggplants. I have canned, frozen and worked hard to make sure we have all we need to survive this winter.

The wood is stocked high, and the generator has been serviced, along with the furnace. We have prepaid for the winters oil supply. We got an insurance plan last year with the $4.30 per gallon prices. We saved so much money, that this years allotment was free!

Winters are hard on the soul around here. The sun goes away in October, and we dont see it again till April. It makes you crave it. The sky stays grey, and the streets white. it can be so tough on your spirit unless you are prepared.

We do that too B2Y. I grew up on a small farm, so it was natural to do all the preparing for the winter months....for us and the cattle. Even though we were in the southern US, at times in the 60s our winters were very cold with lots of snow and ice.

When I left home, I never thought that far ahead until we spent 4 winters in Omaha, NE. Now that was rough. Our first night in Omaha in 1982... -75 with wind chill factored in. I cleared a closet and stocked up first chance I got! I still fill the freezers and store staples for at least 4 months worth of meals for the winter. Especially soup/stew ingredients. It use to be because of the cold that I did this, but with my health and age I try to stay out of public places like grocery stores during flu season.