>>Most households only need a home first aid kit...<<
A rule of thumb I heard was 'stock what you know how to use,' with the possible addition of fancier stuff like CPR masks that could be handed off to anyone in the vicinity who knows CPR.
I have wondered why folks never seem to declare the 'master suite' with attatched bathroom 'the infirmary suite'... especially in a large house or with a large family.
>>... a large array of first aid equipment...<<
I have a home, purse and car first aid kit, all of which I assembled myself! Note: an everyday carry first aid kit is useful for everything from 'I need some tape,' past 'wear these gloves so you don't get paint on your nails,' and on to the intended use of 'someone's sliced their finger open and I'm apparently in charge, d***it.' Mine fits in a small plastic ziplock bag.
>>It is ridiculous to bitch about poor people being dirty or peeing in the street if no proper facilities are available.<<
Start pointing out that people would usually prefer, int the absence of facilities, to 'do their business' on the street instead of in their pants. Especially if they don't have a change of clothes availible.
Related, I think stores might have better luck finding out about clogged toilets and other embarrassing restroom mishaps if they put up a fine/needs service sign on the door. (Let's face it, whoever reports it is assumed to have messed it up.)
>>That's an interesting approach.<<
It was one of the stories in Committed: A Skeptic Makes Peace With Marriage, by Elizabeth Gilbert. I found the book interesting.
>>Do everything at the lowest level where it can reasonably be done.<<
Resource triage. In the days of yore, for volunteering: 1 get everyone up-to-date on very basic stuff (shopping, talking to people, handling emergencies) 2 automate everything you can (reference resources, cheat sheets) 3 help with basic stuff (run-of-the-mill red tape, explaining how stuff works) 4 if you must delegate upstairs, try to be as efficient as possible (details, do we have all the neccesary papers...)
I have a half-formed story idea where a the Friendly Local Subculture manages to deal with a huge influx of folks by...throwing a potluck party, and putting people up in their disaster bunker/community center. And the official government doesn't notice until they need to find some of the folks being housed, fed, and entertained.
>>...and the relationships suffer.<<
I don't envy the problems of the 1800's, but I do envy the fact that when my grandfather was a little boy, he went to these big family reunions with 50-100 people and everyone knew each other and were happy and glad to see each other, and he could have fun playing with a passel of cousins his own age.
>>Those are mostly bad countries that let people suffer if no relative is available to care for them. That's a problem.<<
Fair enough point.
I still wonder if it might make an effective protest against hospital prices (if one could do it without getting in the way). Come to think of it, when my grandparent was in the hospital with a broken bone, an aunt and uncle were basically living at the hospital for a few days.
>>The ambulance alone is often $1000 or more, which is far out of reach for most people, and often not covered even if they have insurance.<<
And official policy is often to call, rather than say drive someone to the ER, because of liability issues. (Source: first aid classes and that one time I had to call 911 for a diabetic emergency where I was volunteering, which is how I learned that they had a policy for that sort of thing.)
>>What's worse is when communities bundle all emergency services into 911.<<
On the surface it is sensible (if the cop is 2min away and the ambulances are across town...) but if you can't call one group...
I guess that means I get to be the face person for dealing with Emergency Services, oh joy. (I have the looks and the accent they'll pay attention to, and a lot of the people I spend time with don't.)
>>By all means, save this and prompt it in the fishbowl!<<
I actually have some other ideas for this storyline as well, but they'll keep for tomorrow!
Re: Thoughts
A rule of thumb I heard was 'stock what you know how to use,' with the possible addition of fancier stuff like CPR masks that could be handed off to anyone in the vicinity who knows CPR.
I have wondered why folks never seem to declare the 'master suite' with attatched bathroom 'the infirmary suite'... especially in a large house or with a large family.
>>... a large array of first aid equipment...<<
I have a home, purse and car first aid kit, all of which I assembled myself!
Note: an everyday carry first aid kit is useful for everything from 'I need some tape,' past 'wear these gloves so you don't get paint on your nails,' and on to the intended use of 'someone's sliced their finger open and I'm apparently in charge, d***it.' Mine fits in a small plastic ziplock bag.
>>It is ridiculous to bitch about poor people being dirty or peeing in the street if no proper facilities are available.<<
Start pointing out that people would usually prefer, int the absence of facilities, to 'do their business' on the street instead of in their pants. Especially if they don't have a change of clothes availible.
Related, I think stores might have better luck finding out about clogged toilets and other embarrassing restroom mishaps if they put up a fine/needs service sign on the door. (Let's face it, whoever reports it is assumed to have messed it up.)
>>That's an interesting approach.<<
It was one of the stories in Committed: A Skeptic Makes Peace With Marriage, by Elizabeth Gilbert. I found the book interesting.
>>Do everything at the lowest level where it can reasonably be done.<<
Resource triage. In the days of yore, for volunteering:
1 get everyone up-to-date on very basic stuff (shopping, talking to people, handling emergencies)
2 automate everything you can (reference resources, cheat sheets)
3 help with basic stuff (run-of-the-mill red tape, explaining how stuff works)
4 if you must delegate upstairs, try to be as efficient as possible (details, do we have all the neccesary papers...)
I have a half-formed story idea where a the Friendly Local Subculture manages to deal with a huge influx of folks by...throwing a potluck party, and putting people up in their disaster bunker/community center. And the official government doesn't notice until they need to find some of the folks being housed, fed, and entertained.
>>...and the relationships suffer.<<
I don't envy the problems of the 1800's, but I do envy the fact that when my grandfather was a little boy, he went to these big family reunions with 50-100 people and everyone knew each other and were happy and glad to see each other, and he could have fun playing with a passel of cousins his own age.
>>Those are mostly bad countries that let people suffer if no relative is available to care for them. That's a problem.<<
Fair enough point.
I still wonder if it might make an effective protest against hospital prices (if one could do it without getting in the way). Come to think of it, when my grandparent was in the hospital with a broken bone, an aunt and uncle were basically living at the hospital for a few days.
>>The ambulance alone is often $1000 or more, which is far out of reach for most people, and often not covered even if they have insurance.<<
And official policy is often to call, rather than say drive someone to the ER, because of liability issues. (Source: first aid classes and that one time I had to call 911 for a diabetic emergency where I was volunteering, which is how I learned that they had a policy for that sort of thing.)
>>What's worse is when communities bundle all emergency services into 911.<<
On the surface it is sensible (if the cop is 2min away and the ambulances are across town...) but if you can't call one group...
I guess that means I get to be the face person for dealing with Emergency Services, oh joy. (I have the looks and the accent they'll pay attention to, and a lot of the people I spend time with don't.)
>>By all means, save this and prompt it in the fishbowl!<<
I actually have some other ideas for this storyline as well, but they'll keep for tomorrow!