Growing up, my Dad was the most organized man I’d ever known.

Dad adopted spreadsheets before they were cool. He laid out his storeroom for pantry items by category and purchase date, and his audiobooks for long drives by subject and author. When he fell in love with our Atari video game “Pitfall,” he didn’t just join the adventure, he put together a map of Pitfall Harry’s world, including all the dangers and shortcuts.

For someone like me, for whom “organized” means “all the stacks of loose paper are roughly the same height,” this was awe-inspiring.  No matter what the situation, Dad was (and is) prepared.

That makes a difference. Especially in the wintertime.

Not long ago, we had our first taste of the snow season. Love it or hate it, snow creates a transformed world, and it’s one that everyone has to be ready for. Which includes taking steps in case snow or ice affect your power line.

Regular readers and longtime LPC customers know that we’ve got a first-rate record when it comes to reliability. A typical customer goes more than two years without an outage, and when one happens, we typically turn things back on in less than an hour. Your power is vital, and we recognize that.

But when the weather turns cold, it pays to be prepared. Remember:

• Keep the vital supplies stocked and close to hand, like flashlights, extra batteries, matches and candles, and a fire extinguisher. You’ll also want some non-perishable food, especially if it doesn’t need heating.
• Non-electric items can be great to have – especially a hand-powered can opener so you can get that food!
• If you have a safe source of heat, keep something warm to drink in the house, like coffee, tea, or hot chocolate. It’ll warm your stomach and your hands.
• Know where you can go if you have to leave the house, particularly if you’ve got young, old, or disabled folks with you.
• If you have something that has to stay powered, like medical equipment, consider a backup generator – but make sure to use it safely! I’ll have more on this in a future piece, but in brief: never use a generator in an enclosed building, always disconnect from the utility power source first, always use the right size and type of power cord, and never run that cord under the rug or carpet.

  More winter tips will come in next week’s piece. But for now, remember that planning ahead can save a lot of trouble later.  Pitfall Harry would approve.

Right, Dad?