First , my apologies to readers out there. My weekly wellness column hasn't been exactly weekly. This time, i really do have a good excuse. Here in Florida, we just got through the storm of the century. Perhaps I am exaggerating a bit there, but Irma was rough. I have lived in Florida for seventeen years and I don't remember any other storm that had quite the same magnitude.
Today's post is related to getting through the storm and how taking just a few extra minutes will make your life a whole lot easier. I first began hearing a buzz about Irma the first weekend of September. This monster storm was out there churning, growing larger by the day, and forecasters were unsure if it would impact the US. Fairly typical hype that one hears on TV. Well, I was out at Walmart on Saturday night and I thought to myself, "I should stock up on water and non-perishables just in case." So I picked up a loaf of bread, peanut butter, crackers, and the like. Then I headed for the bottled water. Aside from the small individual bottles they were completely sold out. A huge part of me said to myself, "The storm is nowhere near us yet, I can always go out tomorrow and pick up water." I got in line, paid for my goods and decided to go home. On the way home, I realized that stopping at Target would only take ten minutes out of my evening. So I did. Target was fully stocked with water and I grabbed six bottles and checked out.
A couple days later, my facebook newsfeed was littered with posts from fellow Floridians who were in a panic due to their inability to find water in the stores. Fights were breaking out in stores...over bottled water! People were driving miles from their home...in search of bottled water. People were putting their names on waiting lists...for bottled water.
Like everyone else, I have made plenty of mistakes in life. I've screwed things up royally and I've missed some good opportunities. This time around; however, taking ten minutes and altering my plans a bit saved me from a lot of anxiety and frustration. Lessons learned: always be prepared and a few extra minutes can have a tremendous impact!
Today's post is related to getting through the storm and how taking just a few extra minutes will make your life a whole lot easier. I first began hearing a buzz about Irma the first weekend of September. This monster storm was out there churning, growing larger by the day, and forecasters were unsure if it would impact the US. Fairly typical hype that one hears on TV. Well, I was out at Walmart on Saturday night and I thought to myself, "I should stock up on water and non-perishables just in case." So I picked up a loaf of bread, peanut butter, crackers, and the like. Then I headed for the bottled water. Aside from the small individual bottles they were completely sold out. A huge part of me said to myself, "The storm is nowhere near us yet, I can always go out tomorrow and pick up water." I got in line, paid for my goods and decided to go home. On the way home, I realized that stopping at Target would only take ten minutes out of my evening. So I did. Target was fully stocked with water and I grabbed six bottles and checked out.
A couple days later, my facebook newsfeed was littered with posts from fellow Floridians who were in a panic due to their inability to find water in the stores. Fights were breaking out in stores...over bottled water! People were driving miles from their home...in search of bottled water. People were putting their names on waiting lists...for bottled water.
Like everyone else, I have made plenty of mistakes in life. I've screwed things up royally and I've missed some good opportunities. This time around; however, taking ten minutes and altering my plans a bit saved me from a lot of anxiety and frustration. Lessons learned: always be prepared and a few extra minutes can have a tremendous impact!
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