Anyone worried about the Bird Flu & Alaskan Cruises?

[BajaFred]

I first started mentioning it to my family/friends last Oct/Nov. Very little info in media at the time. Everyone just started rolling their eyes when I would bring up the subject. Now, they read the articles and ask questions. I think that is one of the biggest things - getting folks to read up on it and thinking about what they need to do for themselves/family to be prepared.

Exotic Newcastle (END) cost this country millions/billion dollars.

I am glad you responded to the OPs original question regarding cruising & AI.

[sail7seas]

While in the grocery store today, I picked up a few more cans of veggies and soup. They have been added to our little 'reserve' and will be available if we need them.

 

[Oceanwench]

Well, a lot of us in Florida [and many in other coastal states] always have our stash of water, canned foods, shelf-stable items, first aid supplies, extra pet food, extra meds, etc. etc.

 

And batteries, generators, flashlights, weather radios ...

 

Guess we're ready come hell or high water! :eek:

[Scrumpy]

We did not hesitate to book a cruise to Alaska due to health concerns. As far as any potential pandemic, I do not think it is eminent. DH flies weekly and rarely gets ill. I worry more about the people he comes in contact with on the plane than I do about the potential (small, at this point) of either us contracting Avian flu in Alaska. I don't doubt that this is remotely possible, but anything is possible and the odds have to be pretty high for us to change what we do.

 

The worst thing that happens if you stock up on things at home is that you throw them out. I found some canned goods that are expired, so they need to go. Not a big deal. I'd rather have some extras and not need them than not have what I do need. Batteries seem to last nearly forever nowadays and I don't worry about having too many of those. We're on well water, so we would do okay even if we had to use a generator for the pump. Overall, I feel pretty safe here at home.

 

Our largest health concern here in Colorado is West Nile Virus. Not only do have to vaccinate our horses against it - and worry about the safety of the vaccine, but we are anxious about catching it ourselves. Our veterinarian caught it and it was a long recovery. Dang mosquitos...

[sail7seas]

Oh....you mean like supplies in case of blizzards? :) We, too, pay attention for a few days/weeks provisions in case of blizzard OR Hurricane in Massachusetts. This, though, I expect could be more than a few week need. I imagine this could be a need for 4-6 weeks.

 

[sail7seas]

We did not hesitate to book a cruise to Alaska due to health concerns...

 

Were we interested in a cruise to Alaska, I would not hesitate for a moment to book it over a bird flu concern. Absolutely, without question, if Alaska were a destination of choice for us we'd be booked.

 

We ARE booked for a Canada/New England Cruise in August. Same odds IMO of the birds appearing on the East Coast as the West Coast??

[Scrumpy]

This guy takes it to an extreme. Kind of an entertaining read. http://www.survivalblog.com/asianflu.html

 

Robin

 

This mentality scares me! It reminds me of when we bought our other rural property and the guy at the county told me he wanted his family all together in houses back-to-back for "when the day came". I couldn't get my head around it; it seemed so paranoid. I am almost a hermit already, but I make a trip to town most weeks - more than that sometimes. I know a lot of folks couldn't live such an isolated existence. Wow...

[Scrumpy]

Oh....you mean like supplies in case of blizzards? :) We, too, pay attention for a few days/weeks provisions in case of blizzard OR Hurricane in Massachusetts. This, though, I expect could be more than a few week need. I imagine this could be a need for 4-6 weeks.

 

 

Knock wood, we made it through the whole winter without even losing power and were only snowed in for a day at a time here and there!

 

I don't purposely stock extra provisions. It works out that way because of the way I shop. I tend to buy in bulk because I don't like shopping. We rarely let things get low or run out. I get a lot of canned goods, but we hardly ever eat them. DH gets fresh veggies every week or so and the canned stuff sits there - for months or years sometimes. It really adds up after a while. I buy "just in case", but am more thinking about having plenty of soup if someone gets sick or having a variety of choices in case we're snowed in for a few days. I had that mentality before we moved to a rural area. My whole shopping mindset changed when I moved to Colorado and the effect of living in the country has been minimal. I get a lot more canned goods in general now than I did in TX; the main concern there was tornados and cans just turn into missiles!

 

I think it's important to be prepared and we've considered converting to propane for some of the appliances. It's a tough call. I'm not going to let rare events or threats dictate our lifestyle too much. A couple of cases of canned goods and water is one thing, but radical changes require a lot more thought.

[sail7seas]

I'm not going to let rare events or threats dictate our lifestyle too much. A couple of cases of canned goods and water is one thing, but radical changes require a lot more thought.

I so agree. A few extra provisions and common sense prep and that is all I intend to get into.

 

I have no intention of changing anything about our lives......one can spend their whole life worrying about one thing or another and let the months/years pass by consumed with that worry.

 

No Way. Not me!!!