Showing posts with label home maintenance. Show all posts
Showing posts with label home maintenance. Show all posts

Friday, December 2, 2011

Emergency Preparedness- notes from a CERT lecture


We had CRAZY winds here in Los Angeles and trees were falling all over the place, knocking over power lines, houses, and cars. Altadena, Pasadena, and other nearby areas got hit hard. It seems like a good time to share some notes I have on emergency preparedness.

Earlier in the year, my workplace had a firefighter come and give the staff a CERT refresher lecture. CERT stands for Community Emergency Response Training. This program educates regular folks on what they can do to prepare for a disaster. In case of a severe disaster it may be a few days before emergency services could get to you, or even longer before basic utilities may be up and running. It was such a great/terrifying class. And this wasn't even the full course, which takes weeks. I thought I'd share my notes from the class. My notes are kind of stream of consciousness, and skip around topics, but the info is accurate. I hope they can be helpful to someone out there.

Disclaimer: This is not a comprehensive list of everything you need in case of emergency. There's much more to be aware of and do. Honestly, I think everyone should try to find one of these courses and attend. It's so informative! 

Monday, February 14, 2011

Rats vs. Termites

Termites swarm from east to west being carried on the Santa Ana winds. Another reason for me to hate the Santa Ana winds. Really though, termites are everywhere in Los Angeles. So are rats. And both are especially into hanging out in my garage and leaving their poops. I'll be dealing with rats later, but the Western Exterminator guy came out today to foam a few spots for me. While he worked, I peppered him with questions. Here's a few factoids I learned today...