Itzl is going to leave the Mushroom Village alone to raise their spores in peace.
As you can see by Itzl's concerned look, this group is for us to check in at to let people know we are alive, doing OK, and not affected by such things as heat, blizzards, floods, wild fires, hurricanes, tornadoes, power outages, or other such things that could keep us off DKos. It's also so we can find other Kossacks nearby for in-person checks when other methods of communication fail - a buddy system. Members come here to check in. If you're not here, or anywhere else on DKos, and there are adverse conditions in your area (floods, heatwaves, hurricanes, etc.), we and your buddy are going to check up on you. If you are going to be away from your computer for a day or a week, let us know here. We care!
If you'd like to be part of the Itzl Alert Network, please leave a comment asking to join, or send us a message asking to join. We'd love to have you. The bigger our network, the less likely someone will be stranded all alone.
Been keeping an eye on the weather, Tropical Storm Isaac. Those of you in hte path still have a couple of days to prepare. Getting through the storm isn't, in my opinion, the hard part. It's the aftermath that's hard. Be sure you prep for that.
Get your prescriptions filled.
Fill every container you can with water. Buy additional containers and fill them, too. Water is always the most essential thing to have. You can buy and sterilize large trash cans - brand new ones will hold lots of water, cheaper than most any other container. If it squicks you to drink from them, use them for cleaning up.
If you have a propane gas grill, stock extra tanks of propane for cooking if our power goes out. Cook all your frozen foods and can them (excellent if you have a pressure canner). If you don't have a pressure canner, maybe a neighbor does, or the church. If there's no access to a pressure canner, eat. Hurricanes and tornadoes always seem to happen when it's hot and food is so very perishable.
When you stock up on groceries, consider powdered milk and buttermilk (you have lots of water, right?), canned evaporated milk, cannd meats and vegetables, rice, pasta, bouillon cubes, tea, coffee, kool-ade, sugar, flour, baking soda, cleaning supplies (lots of cleaing supplies - you'll need them), chain saw oil, spare chain saw chains, gas to power that (if it's electric, like mine, hope your generator is powerful enough to power it!), manual clean up tools, extra pet food, a separate crate or carrier for each pet (keep them in the carriers/crates during the storm - if windows break, they won't escape in a panic, if they seriously panic in a storm, ask your vet for sedatives).
Store your precious memorabilia and paperwork in waterproof containers. You can unpack them after the storm.
If you haven't already bought one, a generator is handy to have - and plenty of gasoline/propane to power them. Use it to power your refrigerator and any medical equipment you need.
Most important, have an evacuation plan ready if you need to evacuate, for every living thing in your household.
Those who have livestock have to consider what to do with all of them.
As for Itzl and I, we're chilly for this time of year - temps are in the low 90's, and the lows are getting down into the 60's! Normally this is the time of year that we stay up in and near triple digits.
Here's hoping your weather is gentle and your day fun and productive, those of you not facing Tropical Storm Isaac.
To get you off to a good start, here are sunrise photos: