Today I casually asked the man who cuts my hair if he was ready for Y2K. (He lives in a nearby city and doesn't know exactly where I live, so I felt safe in discussing it.) He asked if I expected many glitches, and I told him I did. He asked what he should be doing, and I gave him the short version. (Cash in coins and small denominations, canned goods, and water.) I gave him the insurance analogy and explained how to put up water (don't use milk jugs) with a few drops of bleach. He asked how much water should he store, and I said, "Just keep doing it. You only have 75 days!" He appeared to take me seriously, and like my last GI convert, probably has been concerned but doesn't have a computer or access to anything but mainstream news. There are millions like them out there, ready to listen now that it's nearly too late to prepare. Still, a little stuff is better than none at all. As I left his shop I said, "This was the most important tip I've ever given you."

-- Pearlie Sweetcake (storestuff@home.now), October 18, 1999

Answers

Hey Pearlie,

What's wrong with milk jugs?

Al

-- Al K. Lloyd (all@ready.now), October 18, 1999.

They fracture easily if they freeze.

-- Dave (aaa@aaa.com), October 19, 1999.

No matter how well you think you've cleaned a milk jug, milk will still leach out of the pores and into your water. Bad news.

-- Pearlie Sweetcake (storestuff@home.now), October 19, 1999.

It is strange that people are afraid of microscopic particles of milk, when mixed with drinking water, but yet they drink glasses full of the stuff all the time.

-- smitty (smitty@sandiego.com), October 20, 1999.

The milk we drink is presumably fresh. The small particles in our water jugs will have had time to spoil and develop bacteria.

-- Pearlie Sweetcake (storestuff@home.now), October 20, 1999.

Have heard that they also biodegrade at inconvenient times if they are not kept in the dark!

Fill them in Dec. if you have them and then use the water for washing, flushing or whatever doesn't require swallowing. . .

-- Gypsy (GypsiGold@aol.com), October 20, 1999.

I've been filling empty gallon size liquid detergent bottles, which I clearly label. This water will be good for washing clothes, hands, etc. A person could probably go to any laundromat and collect dozens of these empty heavy duty plastic bottles.

-- Margo (margs@bigisland.com), October 20, 1999.

Good idea Margo. Wish I'd thought of doing that.

-- Pearlie Sweetcake (storestuff@home.now), October 21, 1999.