Power Outage

Power outages are very common where I live. They happen often because we get lots of rain so our tree roots don't go very deep. When the wind gusts, trees blow over. Especially when its been raining for a few days like recently. And wouldn't you know we have high winds predicted? I've been through this many times and I do a few simple things to prepare. Our home phone is not a VOIP service, just a plain old phone. That way if the power goes out we still have working phone service. We have plenty of candles, lighters, and matches. If we still had a fireplace I would lay in a supply of wood, however we don't have one. We do have lots of small propane bottles and a propane heater, as well as a propane stove. I've always had a small propane BBQ when living in apartments but now we have a big one as well. We have plenty of food in the house. Several convince foods, like 'chicken helper' that would make a full meal in a single skillet. The animals are stocked up on food. We have tons of blankets. On the day of i lay out candles and a lighter in whatever room I'm in, especially if its night. I generally carry a flashlight in my pocket. If I know in advance that bad weather is planned i plug in my cell phone and start heating up the house. (we keep it pretty cold and usually just use the heater in whatever room we're in) If i didn't have warning i Coral all the animals in a single room with me, it heats up fast! Especially with candles burning! A word of warning, be careful with candles if you have curious cats. If I'm out anyway i fill up the gas tank. Usually we don't have the power out for long, maybe a day but last year my city lost power for several days. However it wasn't the whole city, parts of it still had power. I was lucky enough to have it down for a single day. But I like to be prepared just in case! And if it gets too bad my parents live a few hours away and usually don't experience the exact same weather. But who wants to stuff 5 cats, 2 dogs, and a rabbit in a 4 door car??? Not me!