Prepping Hits Mainstream in Raleigh, NC

greenspun.com : LUSENET : TimeBomb 2000 (Y2000) : One Thread

All of a sudden, prepping is showing signs of coming alive in what is a fairly yuppified, silicon-valley wannabe area of the country.

To get things started off, the local news (WRAL Channel 5) last night ran a number of stories about y2k. The main one was that officials in nearby Fayetteville (Home of Ft. Bragg, 82nd Airborne and Pope Airforce Base) are actively warning residents to be prepared for power outages. This was no coy CYA type warning. It was a right-between the eyes warning. On the other hand, it was not a prediction either. There was some comment by the newscasters that officials had more fear of sabotage than of the computer bug.

I then flip through the channels, and Food Network (the cable channel out of New York) is running a show on Y2k food preparation showing preparation of freeze-dried camping food, MREs, cooking with dried fruit, etc. And they're serious. This is the yuppiest of channels. The show is hosted by Sarah Moulton, the executive chef of Gourmet or one of the other glossy food magazines.

This is all on the same day that the President says the country is in great shape because almost half of the 911 systems will probably work after the rollover!

Then, this morning, I go to the Food Lion grocery store on Lake Boone Trail, and there are massive endcaps stocked with Y2K supplies. Case upon case of Spam, Treet, Corned Beef, Corned Beef Hash, Macaroni and Cheese, Tuna, Velveeta, Powdered Mashed Potatoes, Powdered Gravy, Chicken Broth, Lance Crackers etc., and all manner of canned vegetables. They had everything except a flashing neon sign saying "Panic Now!" The Beef Ravioli section is about 10 times it normal size. As fate would have it there was an elderly lady standing there stocking up on Beef Stew, but that was probably just for the holidays.

I'm guessing someone's JIT system is sending a strong message. Either that or management at Food Lion is trying to flatten the anticipated demand curve during the next 6 weeks.

-- Puddintame (achillesg@hotmail.com), November 11, 1999

Answers

Fayetteville Utility Warns Residents to be Ready for Y2K

FAYETTEVILLE (WRAL) -- Most of us take electricity for granted, but one local power company is warning its customers to be prepared for the worst when the clock strikes midnight this New Year's Eve.

Fayetteville's Public Works Commission is asking residents to prepare for the new year as if a hurricane were approaching, and the request is creating a storm of reaction.

Ron Taylor needs electricity for almost everything he does both at work and home, and he never thought Y2K might leave him powerless.

"That really surprises me. It's been my impression that all these Y2K bugs have been worked out of the system years and years ago," Taylor says.

Sharon Johnson-Harris and her children say a power outage will not leave them in the dark.

"I keep candles and flashlights because of the storms and all," Johnson-Harris says. "If the lights go off and it gets dark, I'm going to deal with it."

The PWC says residents should be ready with:

7 gallons of water per person a battery-operated TV or radio flashlights batteries non-perishable food

Public works leaders are taking the threat so seriously that they are calling in more than 100 workers on the holiday. The extra workers will be waiting in the emergency dispatch room, ready for anything.

"You may lose power depending on where you are. I think if you take that approach you'll be safe. It's just like insurance. You never know when you're going to need it," says PWC Risk Manager Ike Copeland.

The PWC says it does not believe anyone will lose power; they just want customers to be prepared for whatever happens. They say there may be people who cut off others' power to create chaos.

Other area power companies say they are ready for Y2K as well. CP&L, Duke Power and North Carolina Power all say they do not expect any major outages as a result of the possible computer bug. But all three companies do plan to have extra workers on hand on New Year's Eve, just in case.

-- Old Git (anon@spamproblems.com), November 11, 1999.


Got Perrier?

-- I'm Here, I'm There (I'm Everywhere@so.beware), November 11, 1999.

For a hoot, check out the recipes on the Y2Kuisine thread above.

-- Puddintame (achillesg@hotmail.com), November 11, 1999.

I walked through K-Mart yesterday and its more costly oil for lamps is now completely stripped. (The cheaper had been stripped some time ago.) Not a wick or bottle of oil to be had in the place but plenty of lamps sitting there which certainly does show people are preparing. That is just too out of balance.

I did see Hershey products there. It's chocolate bars and chocolate with almond bars, six in a package, and not being sold individually.

I've been monitoring obvious signs that stores are struggling obtaining baby corn which comes from Thailand by several different companies. Mine has been out of both the jarred pickled baby corn and canned baby corn for a long time. Yet, one person in the L.A, area had no trouble finding baby corn in a can. Just within the last few days, my local store finally had a shipment of pickled baby corn, the Roland brand, it was a teeny shipment, and limited to only that. Not a can of "regular" baby corn can be found in the place. This store has always as a norm had a goodly supply of pickled and "regular" baby corn from Thailand. Maybe it was simply a problem with demand? I'm pretty sure it carries the Reese brand as a norm also but I wouldn't stake my life in a bet on that. It was a shortage I had abruptly jolted upon because I love pickled baby corn. I find it almost addictive. I think my reaction has been a series of hyperventilating, clutching my heart, and taking steps back in horror and shock. I must have my "fix" of pickled baby corn.

My favorite store sure isn't setting up a display for all to stock up on pickled baby corn to flatten a demand curve. And may I add it has been WEEKS since the several brands of chinese barbecue sauce have vanished off the shelves and it was more than one brand of it!

There is quite obviously a media blackout on the companies experiencing failure, or the just in time delivery system crumbling like dust under demand. How is it my local store is out of these Asian imports for a very long period of time?

Check the pickled baby corn and see if it is just my area suffering an earth shatering and severe shortage.

-- Paula (chowbabe@pacbell.net), November 11, 1999.


I looked. "TRES LEECHES PECAN SHORTCAKES WITH DRIED FRUIT COMPOST"... Mercy. Fried SPAM is sounding better all the time. (And how do you get "medium" heat out of a Sterno cooker?)

-- I'm Here, I'm There (I'm Everywhere@so.beware), November 11, 1999.


Well, good for you guys!!!!

Glad to hear this.

-- lisa (lisa@work.now), November 11, 1999.


I've never known anyone with a pickled baby corn fetish before, do you like to mud wrestle?

-- goldbug (goldbug@mint.com), November 11, 1999.

Moderation questions? read the FAQ