Nobody ever says.......

I was TOO prepared! Welcome to week three of National Safety Month. This week's theme is Emergency Preparedness. I know a little something about this topic. I'd like to start out with a quote from former King County Emergency Management Director Eric Holdeman: "There are four stages of Preparedness Denial--

1.) It won't happen.

2.) If it does happen, it won't happen to me.

3.) If it does happen to me, it won't be that bad.

4.) If it does happen to me, and it's bad, there's nothing I can do about it anyway.

Do any of these attitudes sound familiar? Sure they do. Don't be ashamed. Chronic lack of preparedness is just another facet of human nature, it's been around since the beginning of time. Pompeii anyone? Everytime Mt. Vesuvius erupted, the citizens went back and rebuilt with the notion that since it just erupted, surely it won't do it again. Yes it will (and did), and don't call me Shirley! No one wants to think about bad things happening, well except for maybe the goth kid down the street. However, there is a marked difference between dwelling on major catastrophes and taking a few simple steps to make sure you have the tools you need to survive. Get motivated, set an example! It doesn't hurt to be prepared....it hurts not to be. For tips on many different ways to be prepared, click here.