There was a thread with this subject, but I keep remembering new stuff! My latest:

Insect repellent. I don't mean Off! or Cutter, I mean RAID! Like for wasps & hornets. I'd hate to need some of that and not have any around. Also, diaper pins. About 2 months ago I bought 2 dozen of them, duckies and teddy bears to be precise, and today I can't find one! They disappear around here, faster than AA batteries.

-- Arewyn (isitthatlate@lready.com), October 20, 1999

Answers

Arewyn, I found various sizes of safety pins, including diaper size, but without fancy duckie heads, at CVS Pharmacy in the notions section a few days ago. Had hunted all over for safety pins, even fabric stores. There are many (forget count) in the package for $2.49.

-- Elaine Seavey (Gods1sheep@aol.com), October 20, 1999.

Replacement mopheads. Vacuum bags (yes, I'm an optimist). And more of everything. The pins remind me of a friend's Russian cousin. Jewelry is in short supply (in the provinces anyway) so Russians will take safety pins and thread all sorts of things on them--beads, fancy buttons, shirred ribbon, etc.--to make costume jewelry. Another cousin pleaded for a bra. And neither of them had ever seen feminine hygiene supplies. Shoes were, and probably still are, in very short supply. And make-up and perfume samples (from an Avon friend) and hotel soaps and shampoos were greatly desired for small bribes. For what? Well, when one cousin was in the hospital, a lipstick sample got her a shower or use of the phone. A tiny perfume sample got her a fresh needle, rather than one that had been reground. Sobering!

-- Old Git (anon@spamproblems.com), October 20, 1999.

Clothes line and clothes pins. Most people have driers now and having some rope and pins will come in handy.

-- smfdoc (smfdoc@aol.com), October 20, 1999.

Light bulbs. Power surges will probably blow a lot of bulbs.

-- Carol (glear@usa.net), October 21, 1999.

The magic words stated above were "more of everything". If we slide into a Russian-like economy where the shelves are bare, all those things that are life and death would still be nice to have. Sneakers, socks, underware, detergent, dishsoap, etc., etc. Especially those things that you hadn't thought of cause they needed electricity.

-- Dave (aaa@aaa.com), October 21, 1999.

Old Git's post reminds me of another post. It was a great post by someone who'd survived the seige of the (Olympic) city in Bosnia whose name is just beyond reach to me now, who suggested that they'd learned that the little things were very important in keeping up morale: things such as cosmetics for the women, paperback novels, sanitary and freshen-up toiletries, sweets.

-- Elaine Seavey (Gods1sheep@aol.com), October 21, 1999.

I've embarassed myself on other threads waxing on about perfumes, colognes, lipsticks, blanket pins, and candies. Now for another 'girlie' thing of value... several friends volunteer every year to build Indian villages with local school kids. Many of us only touch base at this time of year, we share food and often little gifts. One year a female friend brought me a wonderful bar of soap, I think it had wildflowers in it - the kind my mother would think one should put in a lingerie drawer, to good to use for washing. The menfolk were quite amused and interested in this, we smiled and said 'it's a girl thing'. Well, not to be outdone - one of the guys came a couple of days later and brought my husband a bar of 'Irish Spring' - a small rope was attatched with a 13 turn hangman's noose on it. They explained 'it's a guy thing'. I guess so, he still has it on a shelf in his office many years later. Nice soaps make for nice gifts.

At the thrift stores I've been picking up embroidered handkerchiefs. My old friend from Dresden dearly loved her pieces of crystal and porcelain teacups. These things have little value for many of us nowadays.

-- flora (***@__._), October 21, 1999.

Eye wash and cup to rinse irritant out of the eyes. Keopectate (sp?) and laxatives. Epsom salts for soaking wounds. Monostat for female infections. Triple antibiotic cream. Antifungal cream. Ace bandadges. First aide manual. Candy bars for the children. Wash tub and wash board. Clothes line or rack to dry clothes. Extra plastic containers. Battery opperated tape player or CD player with tapes or CD's. Deck of cards. Scrabble game. Books from used book store. Extra jeans and shoes (imported). Sewing kit for repairs. Barter items like TP, sugar, alcohol. Diary to record events and feelings

-- Leslie (***@***.net), October 22, 1999.

GRAVY

-- no talking please (breadlines@soupkitchen.gov), October 22, 1999.

Something Flora said above about embroidered handkerchiefs set off a light bulb for me. We need to stock up on all kinds of handkerchiefs - from lady type ones to the big blue or red bandana ones. They are washable and Kleenex may be hard to come by.

-- beckie (sunshine_horses@yahoo.com), October 22, 1999.

Carol, and all,

If someone has an alternative energy system with a modified square wave inverter, stock LOTS of extra light bulbs. The waveforms are tough on bulb filaments.

MFU

-- Man From Uncle 1999 (mfu1999@hotmail.com), October 22, 1999.

Thanks for the tip on diaper pins; I've been paying $1.19 for 4 at the market! Another thing I've gotten is cloth diapers. Boy, do they come in handy! A pack of 12 (if you can find them) is about $11.00 around here. Our Walmart does not stock them, I found them at the drugstore. They are very absorbant, of course, and can be made in to very effective (if bulky compared to ultra-thin storebought) sanitary pads. I have also used them as emergency wound dressing, on top of a pre-packaged gauze pad that got sopped quickly. My favorite thing about cloth diapers is that you can bleach the hell out of them and get any stains out. They'd make good hankies, too, maybe cut them down to smaller sizes.

I've gotten two different kinds of cloth diapers: regular & pre- folded. The regular are about 24" x 24", and lend themselves to many uses. The pre-folded ones are stitched into a narrower rectangle with multiple layers in a strip down the center.

I bet if there's a diaper service in your area (we don't have one here) you could get a bundle of diapers fairly cheap.

Thanks for all the responses, I get so many good ideas from them! Let's not forget to scour the dollar stores, either!

-- Arewyn (isitthatlate@lready.com), October 22, 1999.

Elaine

Not that I'm going to spell it right, but that place is called Sarejavo. Yes, many good prep hints are availible from there. Also, anyone who has been to Russia recently can add insight.

Keep your...

-- eyes_open (best@wishes.not), October 22, 1999.

*Dental repair kit - abut $5.00 at Wal-Mart. Not too many other places carry it (I've only seen it at Campmor, nowhere else). Also buy antiseptic mouthwash - diseased gums can hurt just as bad as cavities.

*Extra fireplace grate (black metal log rack - holds firewood off of the floor of the fireplace). If you burn coal, look for a grate that has square holes on the bottom, not straight open slats. Coal burns hotter, longer, and if too many "fresh" live coals burn on the fireplace/woodstove floor, it could damage it (or severely weaken the metal floor of the woodstove).

*For women, a butane-powered curling iron. Can be bought at Wal-Mart for $12.00 (brand name: "Cordless Curls" by Conair). Replacement butane cartridges cost $3.00 or so.

(Ok guys, you might laugh about this, but keeping a clean and neat appearance is very important to morale. Thinnk of it this way: If you think 1 week of PMS is bad, just try a couple of weeks of "bad hair day"! You'll be breaking down Wal-Mart's doors trying to get the curling iron for the missus...)

-- Deb (v.mcclell@columbus.rr.com), October 22, 1999.

some additional random thoughts from an insomniac

I bought a solar shower that is used on sail boats for about $6.00. Not sure if I can use it to heat water for making rice or oatmeal because it probably won't get hot enough and it might not be food grade (I will check), but even in cold climates it will heat water for a shower. If nothing else works, hot water for dishes or a shower could be a real treat.

Wide mouthed thermoses to keep hot foods hot. If you are cooking over a campfire or using propane, it will be a hassle to manage any thing beyond simple. Use a thermos to store hot water or left overs.

wooden matches. Extra charcoal and charcoal lighter for grilling outdoors or in an open garage. Do not use this stuff inside.

extra bleach, extra vinegar. Antibacterial anything that proliferates today is scarey. We are developing a whole class of germs that is resistant to medication. Just do not combine them-- resultant mix is poison if I remember correctly.

The last few days of December you may wish to freeze small bottles of drinking water in the freezer (open them first and use or pour out a small amount so they wont crack). If the power goes out, they will keep the refrigerator side cold and provide drinking water to boot

dried fruit in the food preps. If there is a prolonged time without power or availability of fresh fruit, dried helps

Whole coffee beans can be steeped in water (or vodka for that matter) to make a liquid coffee concentrate. I plan to experiment with the proportions. I like whole beans and do not plan to grind my entire supply.

Diaper wipes as an alternative to washing hands

-- Nancy (wellsnl@hotmail.com), October 27, 1999.

A durable snow shovel and rock salt. You REALLY don't want to slip and fall and get hurt THIS winter ! But don't over do it and get hurt that way either.

-- biker (y2kbiker@hotmail.com), October 27, 1999.