By DANA DITTMAR, CEO, SCC CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
Dana Dittmar
It’s coming up on August, which is supposedly the height of hurricane season in Florida. As I write this, there isn’t one on the way. But as you have heard a bajillion times from every local station, it pays to be prepared.
The hurricane guide tells you how to prepare your home, your business, and your car for the wind and rain. But what I have yet to see in any publication or on any TV show is how to prepare you and your family for the hours of boredom that come with being housebound for days without electricity.
I don’t know about you, but after the third game of Scrabble and two hours of solitaire, I begin to unravel. During the day, you can read that classic novel you’ve successfully avoided since high school, or cut out yet another recipe for baked salmon from the latest Martha Stewart magazine.
You can only rearrange the sock drawer so many times, so here are some ideas of fun things to do to keep sane when the winds hit 100 miles per hour and the rain is coming down sideways.
Learn how to make a grilled cheese sandwich by holding it over a candle. Don’t do this with tuna fish. Or egg salad.
Experiment with your makeup. No one will ever know.
Break into your emergency stash of Tootsie Pops and count how many licks it takes to get to the center.
Take out the grandkids’ coloring book and color everything outside of the lines. While you’re in their toy box, you might as well use their bubble-blower stuff to give the cats something to chase.
Think really hard about someone you know out of state and try — using telepathy — to get them to call your cell. When they don’t, get mad at them for not caring enough about you.
Sing really loud. Wear your new makeup and sing into the soup ladle. No one can hear you over the wind.
Write to someone using only letters cut out from the Martha Stewart magazine.
Think of all of the breeds of dogs you could put together to create a whole new breed. Get creative with the breed name. I think the Labradoodle was created by someone during Hurricane Camille.
Throw grapes at each other and try to catch them in your mouth. The ones that hit the floor you can stomp to make wine. It should be fermented by the time you get your power back. Only use white grapes unless you have red carpet.
Okay, so maybe not all of these are very practical. But you have to admit it will make sitting at home for two days in the dark a lot more fun!
