Ice Storm!

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

The biggest lesson we learned from all of this was that you are on your own. The local or state or federal government is going to be of limited help, so you had better have an alternate source of heat, water, and food. Good neighbors are critical to mutual survival.

This is very very true.
In our little neighborhood of about 12 houses' worth of people knowing each other, we all were checking on each other and doing little things. Some are elderly, and one neighbor who brought hot soup to the oldest couple (in their late 80's, one in a wheelchair), sized up the situation and then called the grown children and suggested their parents really weren't up to staying in their house alone while the power was out. The 'children' then came and got their parents out of there for the duration.
It's a good feeling to know how your neighbors are faring, what's going on, and to be able to knock on their doors and help each other out or ask for help.
We were really glad to have had all our emergency supplies stocked up well before hand: non-perishable food enough for about 3 weeks, bottled drinking water, wood for the woodstove that kept us from freezing, propane for the camp stove, battery radio, candle lamps, oil lamps, flashlights, car all gassed up, etc. We normally do have plenty of warm winter clothes and blankets.
It's always a somber reminder to find out just how much our 'normal' lives depend on electricity.

[bmccasland]

After no power for 7 days, and no phone/internet for 11 days, God help us all if there is ever a terrorist attack or natural disaster that disrupts the power, water, and food supply for more than a day or two. I honestly think that the vast majority of people are totally unprepared.

All of us in the "Blow Zone" really hoped the nation learned it's lesson after Katrina / Rita. I suppose in some areas the answer is still "no" or "not-quite".