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Six Days in the Dark

tonyyo11.github.io

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Re: Six Days in the Dark

#11

Post by 01HNNWZ0MV43FF »

throwaway43271 wrote: post #7

[flagged]

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_2025

Hope this clears it up. The changes that Republicans are proposing are going to be a disaster for anyone who is not basically a white straight Christian man who doesn't watch porn.

It's shaping up to be a very bad 4 years for people like me and I encourage everyone to vote Democrat in every election they can legally vote in.

If you don't believe me ask around and any friends you have who are queer or care about abortion will tell you things are very looking grim for us.

In short it is a consolidation of absolute power in the hands of a few rich bullies who are wanting to torment minorities as a distraction while they steal from as many Americans as they can

Re: Six Days in the Dark

#12

Post by nancyminusone »

It seems so strange to me to remember that seemly most people don't have a generator. Of course,where I live, everyone is on a well, so no power means no water, which means you can't flush the toilet. There's so many generators around that our current generator is one someone else threw out in the trash.

I was watching 8-bit guy on youtube cover his experience through the Texas snowstorm a few years back, when he offhandedly mentioned that before that, he pretty much had no power interruptions at all within the last decade.

I was stunned. 10 years? We're lucky to make it 10 months.

Re: Six Days in the Dark

#13

Post by reillyse »

01HNNWZ0MV43FF wrote: post #9
don-code wrote: post #3

A few years ago, I had a three-day power outage. Unfortunately, at the time I worked for an e-commerce company, and Black Friday was in two weeks - not the time for me to be off work. (Mind you, this was 2021, and temporarily returning to the office was questionable at best at that time). Most of my neighbors seemed to have up and left. The immediate neighborhood was quiet. I ventured out and saw what had happened: a…

Could you tell me more about why the car shouldn't be used as a generator, why an engine might not warm up at idle, and how you kept jelly at room temperature? Thanks

Jam is generally shelf stable. The sugar is really good at killing bacteria (deprives them of water iirc).

Re: Six Days in the Dark

#14

Post by ianburrell »

thuanao wrote: post #5

> Whatever you think you need to have saved, know you probably need more. I quickly blew through my rainy-day funds. Huh!? Forget canned food and go-bags. If you only have a few days worth of savings that is an emergency. I hope I’m misunderstanding what you mean by “rainy day funds”

Maybe he means cash. It is good to have some cash ($100-1000) for outages of credit cards, or just needing cash.

Re: Six Days in the Dark

#15

Post by alnwlsn »

mk_stjames wrote: post #4

Post wants to talk about money spent and smart ways to prepare... and then goes and links the portable battery system used and it is a 4kwh battery+inverter+solar charger combo with a few 200W solar panels that costs... get this.. $4399. These stupid 'home battery' units are just stupidly, stupidly marked up for what they do. You can buy a ~5.2 kwh 48v battery for People are getting fleeced by these cutely packaged b…

I hadn't looked into those battery pack things before, but that price is ridiculous. Around here, you can get a generator which will power everything you need in an emergency for about 1/10th the price.

Re: Six Days in the Dark

#16

Post by nancyminusone »

reillyse wrote: post #10

This all seems like an insane overreaction. I question what gets someone into this level of panic. Just chill out for a couple of days and enjoy reading some books and have an adventure. Unless you’ve got a medical emergency and need to have power for some devices just relax and wait for the power to be reconnected. I get that there are emergencies in the world but not having power at home is an inconvenience.

Am I alone in thinking it's a bit silly to be concerned about breathing in 6 extra days of naturally occuring radon, of all things?

It's cool that we can get these air sensors things, but they sure give people who worry about numbers some additional ones to worry about.

Re: Six Days in the Dark

#17

Post by mindslight »

throwaway43271 wrote: post #7

[flagged]

Fear mongering? This kind of postmodern trolling lost its plausibility on January 21st. We've now got a concentration camp, a blockade preventing imports of necessary supplies, government institutions being destroyed and parted out to the coziest briber, other government institutions turned into skull crackers for a wanna-be dictator, and a deep breakdown in the rule of law as courts' sternly worded letters are simply ignored.

If at this point you're really still in post-reality denial that our country isn't in the process of being destroyed by a mentally ill mobster autocrat backed by an anti-constitutional corporate totalitarian movement, then you're the one that needs help. Serious help. We can still defend our country together, but first you've got to join the rest of us in reality.

Re: Six Days in the Dark

#18

Post by mindslight »

alnwlsn wrote: post #15
mk_stjames wrote: post #4

Post wants to talk about money spent and smart ways to prepare... and then goes and links the portable battery system used and it is a 4kwh battery+inverter+solar charger combo with a few 200W solar panels that costs... get this.. $4399. These stupid 'home battery' units are just stupidly, stupidly marked up for what they do. You can buy a ~5.2 kwh 48v battery for People are getting fleeced by these cutely packaged b…

I hadn't looked into those battery pack things before, but that price is ridiculous. Around here, you can get a generator which will power everything you need in an emergency for about 1/10th the price.

For outages like this, you can't really beat the effectiveness of a gas generator.

Just beware of the "dual fuel" lure of thinking you only need propane. In the winter, the self-evaporation rate of a 20lb propane tank isn't nearly enough to even power my little 2500 watt inverter generator.

Solar panels and batteries are for if you're preparing for a really long outage when gasoline might not be available.

Re: Six Days in the Dark

#19

Post by reillyse »

nancyminusone wrote: post #16
reillyse wrote: post #10

This all seems like an insane overreaction. I question what gets someone into this level of panic. Just chill out for a couple of days and enjoy reading some books and have an adventure. Unless you’ve got a medical emergency and need to have power for some devices just relax and wait for the power to be reconnected. I get that there are emergencies in the world but not having power at home is an inconvenience.

Am I alone in thinking it's a bit silly to be concerned about breathing in 6 extra days of naturally occuring radon, of all things? It's cool that we can get these air sensors things, but they sure give people who worry about numbers some additional ones to worry about.

I really wonder if there is something else at play here. None of this is normal behavior and it's very strange for it to be normalized.

Day 4 no more deliveries but we still have takeout! For real, you can still order food from your local restaurants and you are in a panic about things. Instead of spending $4,500 on a generator you'll never use again maybe just pack the kids in a car an go to the beach for the weekend. Seriously.

When I was a kid I enjoyed the days we lost power. Grab a candle and have a laugh in the dark. It was fun.

That said, I don't want to be mean. I do think there is a generalized anxiety that is very much enabled on the internet. Like this kind of behavior - basically prepping - is encouraged.

I read analysis that suggested that prepping behavior is a way of coping with feelings of inadequacy by imagining a future world where all the person's capabilities will be fully appreciated. "All my guns and dried rice and my underground bunker will make me the most relevant person in the future". Most prepper's visions of the future are unique to them and focus on their skills. E.g. one of us tech types might think we could create a connected network and support wifi for a region and be a source of knowledge or something. Obviously if something did happen all of this would go to shit in seconds but that isn't the point..

Maybe it's all just a fantasy of feeling relevant.

Re: Six Days in the Dark

#20

Post by Animats »

This is the new normal in the US. FEMA is being dismantled.[1]

Until a few years ago, being prepared for loss of services for 48 hours was considered sufficient. That's not enough any more, because there will be much less help coming from outside the area.

[1] https://www.cnn.com/2025/03/26/politics/fema-payments-staffi...

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