Icewind’s Arctic Survival Kit

I started writing this post just after Christmas when one of my presents from my new son in law and daughter decided that I needed a survival kit to make sure I was ready for any emergency on these long . . . cold . . . dark winter nights that we have in Alaska during the winter months. It was put into my working folder until now since I have not been writing much lately.

I had no idea I really needed anything like this but I have heard of people who prepare for any road emergency by having in the trunk of their rig a few survival items. Blankets, food, flashlight, matches and a lighter are some of the more common items found in the northlands of the Arctic. Others may be sleeping bags, bunny boots, heavy gloves, and the assorted food items that would not freeze or could be eaten without fire or warmth.

It turns out my daughter and her husband decided I needed something a little different now that some things have recently changed for me. I do not need a survival kit for my rig but one for my office at home. After our recent move I found myself in a much smaller office and one now that is shared with two noisy roommates. Both are large white things that make noise of different sorts depending on which one is working the hardest. The wet one has several different noises depending on which cycle it is running. The spin cycle seems to drive me nuts as the final wind down to a stop is loud and somewhat obnoxious. The dry one is not too bad unless there is some buckle or other hard object trapped inside the drum and gets to tumble over and over making that loud clunking noise that seems to find its way inside your brain over and over again for the hour it tumbles. I even ‘hear’ these as I’m trying to get the few hours of sleep I require a night.

I guess sharing a laundry room with the white things is not the worst space I have ever occupied as I do remember one time I had what was part of a closet to explore my new found thing called the internet.

Much to my surprise on Christmas morning there was a nicely wrapped package that when opened revealed a most welcomed sight. It was a large tote filled with survival items to help me through the long nights while writing or working on bids.

There were several items that make your chance of survival increase by leaps and bounds . . . food . . . sort of . . .

Reece’s Peanut Butter Cups, Snickers, and Butterfinger candy bars just to name a few of the items in my survival pack. There were also drinks . . . CoCa Cola for sure since originally being from Atlanta it was the only soft drink we were allowed growing up.

Guinness is the beer of choice for me as well as the “Good to the last drop” Maxwell House ‘Master Blend’ coffee. Mix in some Jiff crunchy peanut butter to go on the Oatmeal cookies and wash it all down with an Advil and I can survive the worst storm of the century.

The kids were worried about me surviving a long winter so I had my ample supply of junk food, coffee, and Guinness but as things turned out it would be a time trying to figure out the survival of my daughter, who knew it would end up that way during the holidays.

It was not long after the holidays that my daughter started getting sick and over a several month period she continued to have trouble keeping food down or remain hydrated so it was not long before she would make a trip to the hospital emergency room where she would receive IV fluids to rehydrate her and different medications for the nausea and send her home. After losing over 25 pounds in body weight and several weeks stay in the hospital it narrowed to her kidneys working only 30 to 40% of normal causing her system to become out of whack chemically. She’s doing better now in the process of getting herself healthy and raising her one year old who has just discovered his ability to ‘walk’. He was taking his first spastic steps around the house while she was in the hospital and now she is able to experience this wonderful thing which is helping her recover her strength getting back to normalcy with their lives.

The rest we will deal with as time goes on.

Ice