Quake News... Video of the City Centre and Preparing Things

Sometimes things on here (esp lately~) are nothing to do with Gardening or Butterflies *grin*...
Found this on Stuff.
Its the updated video of what is happening inside our city centre.
The Red Zone... sounds so ominous. It is definitely a hive of activity, past and present - hard to identify where you are. Thank God we are seeing some progress. Now, what about those houses eh. Time to move along.
Its about PEOPLE not BUILDINGS. Right?
LINK TO VIDEO 

The latest aftershock of size was this morning ... A Four on the richter scale, gave most of us a wee fright, Im sure. Just when you think we are moving on to better things and you get a shake-up :) LINK Belfast got centred  by it this morning!

Its things like THIS HERE that make you go BOOOOO!!! - We have heard this story before, havent we?  Because its scary... we need to keep preparations foremost in our minds, quietly preparing, gently preparing... we (as families, parents, communities)  cannot change what we do not know, but we can learn what we NEED to know to cope...
But these wide and erratic predictions do nothing but feed and spread fear which stymies any growth. I think the media and other responsible bodies need to be cracked over their collective heads for allowing these stories to gather any credence. Give us knowledge - teach people what they need to know to cope, dont feed them part of the story and let them wonder? Another LINK  

Some things below to think about... do, plan.. save etc.

HAVE A PLAN - CHECK THE PLAN
Alter the plan as you need to.
Let others know what your plan is, in case you need to be found for any reason.
Where do you meet in an emergency?
Who picks up who?
What are alternatives?
Who do the children trust in an emergency?
Talk it through with your partner, your family, your children. Even your work-mates.
Use possible situations like...
What would we do if ...
Where would you go if Mum wasnt here...
If Dad couldnt get to...
Help the kids understand and  listen to their ideas,  explaining things in simple terms, a calm voice,  no need to add too many details, answer their questions - if theyre like my children, they may have many.

Know what you need and have it handy - especially Formula, Bottles etc, Nappies, Sanitary Pads etc, Warm clothing and MEDICATIONS. Batteries, Radio, Childrens favourite toys/cuddly - Maps if required.
A leash for the dog. Dog/Cat food.
Just in case you need to get out.

Prepare - buy what you can, know what you can make do with, or gather alternatives.
Necessity is the Mother of Invention :-)
LEARN - Read what you can, know about the possibilities, without feeling the fear. Mind power is awesome. Believe in the possibilities.
Positive Ideas, feelings and outcomes.

PLEASE  Dont leave it to the last minute. 

Fill and Store Water Bottles and Refill them regularly (2-3 months)
First Aid Kit - gather what you need now, and have one in your car

Have a wee read HERE and be prepared






LINKY LINK!
THE NZ SHAKEOUT- At 9.26am on Wednesday 26 September, we aim to have one million participants in the New Zealand Shake Out earthquake drill, the first ShakeOut drill held nationwide in any country!

Participants at home, work and school will practice "Drop, Cover and Hold"—the right action to take in an earthquake...

Im not talking about fearful worrying panics. Im thinking things through, talking, planning, overcoming issues, surrounding yourself in the knowledge we will get through whatever comes our way.

Love, Blessings
And Warm thoughts...
E BUTTERFLY
XXXXXXXXX

Making a List of Things to Do... Frugal Plans

Firstly, THANK YOU Sarah at Kiwi Mummy Blogs. 

We got accepted to be on their blog list. I hope that will mean more views, some comments... 

Glad to be there! 

Awesome reading others blogs too!

Hmm, Got my Serious Face on tonight.
Somehow deep thinking always gives me a headache :-)
I want to start getting ahead in my plans, start targetting things, so Ive made *The List*.
I would like to move things out of town to our own land... I need some clear direction to where we are going, so Im adding things I need to do, to make this possible.
THE REALITY IS... oh I hate that phrase... but the reality IS, that it is going to take me a while to get organized... so along the way, I want to achieve some other *life things* too.

*Plant more herbs... 
*Buy Seeds Often 
*Want to make my chicken coop
*Put up some Outside lights (hehe, so I can garden deep into the night?)
*Get some timer switches for our new heaters (for Winter)
*Get rid of the Clutter that accumulates
*Down-size... Everywhere!
*Get better organized so I can cope with my financials throughout the year... We dont do too bad, but I can always do better, Im sure of it.
*Buy myself a new camera. --- really, this should be at the top of the list, Im emotionally bereft without it!
*Get guitar lessons so I can learn with Mr 10.5yrs who is learning at school
*Make myself a recipe book, somewhere all my recipes will be all together, not on pieces of paper or files on disks etc... Get it TOGETHER!
*Make a song book for Miss 4 so we can sing together, and she can learn to read too.
*Blog more... Get out More... Make more Friends... Influence More People? LOL no, its been done, but the idea is a good one!
*Buy myself a new (laptop?) computer. One that I can take to bed... town... the riverbank... etc.
*Sleep better, longer... and wake up beautiful? LOL right.
* Ressurect my massage bed so I can have clients at home again. I miss therapeutic massage...and the smell of lavender oil. Its lovely when your house always smells pleasant.

So theres some other financial stuff to add to the list, but its boring... ok, its important too, but all-in-all, I just want to downsize. I want to be able to move out of here and not take the clutter too :-) Is this possible? I guess time will tell...

Another one of my wishes for my list, is to better try to LISTEN. Im trying to understand better where my teenagers are at, and sometimes its too easy to SPEAK instead of LISTEN... I found this link, its inspirational...
BEING LOVING OR BEING RIGHT by Hilary Smith

So thats it! -  Friday night, and we are ensconced watching American Idol. Well, not really actually. I am on here blogging, and as I look behind me, The Lad is reading some heavy looking read by Bernard Cornwell. Little Miss Muffet is asleep. She didnt sleep well last night, and subsided early. Hmmm. I just heard an enormous yawn. hehe. It wont be long and it will be me on my lonesome...

Sleep well,
Have a GREAT weekend.
EButterfly