Inside Marcy's Mind
Having hosted the Aging aint for Sissie's podcast for two years, I wanted to expand what I could discuss. This podcast will touch on the fun of aging and whatever has crossed my mind! Please join me as I walk through life! #retirement #travel #fun #aginggracefully Link in my bio! Listen now!
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Inside Marcy's Mind
Packing the Perfect Go Bag and Other Life Lessons
Discover the blend of life's ups and downs with me, Marcy Backhus, as I share personal anecdotes from my week, tackling everything from public speaking jitters to the search for the perfect pair of shoes. This episode encapsulates a dynamic mix of experiences, from my role leading the stewardship committee at church and collaborating with a younger team on digital updates, to navigating the excitement and nerves of an upcoming wedding in Portland. We'll also explore my newfound sensitivity to chlorine from aqua sculpt workuts, and the gripping allure of the series "Tulsa King." It's a whirlwind week filled with excitement, challenges, and plenty of personal growth.
Then, we shift gears to discuss the crucial topic of emergency preparedness. I offer guidance on assembling a comprehensive go bag, packed with essentials for those unexpected moments—think water, protein bars, first aid kits, and even considerations for your pets. And if you've ever wondered why your eyes and teeth aren't covered by standard health insurance, I'll explore this curious exclusion and invite you to share your thoughts. Join me for an episode brimming with relatable stories, practical advice, and a smattering of intriguing facts designed to enrich your week.
Hello and welcome to Inside Marc's Mind. My name is Marci Backus and I am your host. Well, on today's episode, we will be talking about safety. Basically, we're going to be talking about what a go bag is. There's been a lot of bad weather, a lot of things happening. I lived in California for most of my life. Craig and I have lived in different places. We also lived in Texas, where there's tornadoes and you always need to have a go bag. And if you don't know what that is, stay tuned and we will talk about it. But before that, we are going to talk about what's been going on in my life. So sit back, grab a cup of coffee, get an iced tea, get that my favorite Diet Coke and join us.
Marcy Backhus:Well, what a week had a busy week. A while ago, I think, I shared with you that I had taken a position at our church as the lead on the stewardship committee, and so stewardship is starting and it will kick off this weekend, so I will have to be standing in front of church at all three services. But public speaking is not one of my fears. Obviously, I'm doing it right here, but it's funny. It's really not a fear, but just before I do it, I get nervous and sometimes during it I'll get a little nervous and I don't know why, cause I don't really fear it, but I think that's just human. So I spent a lot of time last week with a young guy from our committee, lance, working so hard. I don't know why. If you can hear Pickles Enough, good morning, miss Pickles. Hello to the world out there.
Marcy Backhus:Miss Pickles says it's nice working with young people again in my office. Well, they're not so young anymore. So if you're listening, ha, ha, ha, ha ha. When I first started working with them was about 12 years ago now and they were young. They're a little older now 12 years older but it's always refreshing and I enjoy it and I don't have I don't have any threatening from it, I just love it. And once again, they are always blown away by my um computer knowledge and the things that I do. So it always makes me happy and it was really fun.
Marcy Backhus:Yesterday I met with um the cathedral. We've hired a new um person to do social media and website and we had to have website edits. So we met with her and again, that was fun. It was fun watching things that we wanted to come alive and I don't know. It's been a really as scared as I was to be on the stewardship committee and I'm still scared because we have to raise the money and if we don't then I feel like it's my fault. So, and I know it's not so, but that's a. That's a tough one, but anyhow, we are heading into that season and I have faith. I have stretched my spiritual wings and we'll see if I can fly.
Marcy Backhus:I've noticed for the last several months all of you know I my workout routine is um water aerobics, or aqua sculpt as it's called, and I have developed a sensitivity to chlorine. It's not good. So, working on that, I have a little bit of itchies sometimes Got a haircut this week. I always love a haircut Also means I need to bleach my hair and let's see.
Marcy Backhus:Oh, we're going to a wedding in Portland at the end of the month and then we're going to go visit my brother and his wife. My brother built a beautiful home and we're going to go stay there and we're going to get to see that. I'm excited about that. I don't see my brother all that often and so I I'm. I'm definitely looking forward to this. Um, my brother and his wife. I was trying to figure out how long they've been married. They got to be coming up on the 50 year mark somewhere, because I was a teenager in high school when they got married, so they're probably married 47 years or something like that. I think that's so awesome and I'm excited to see their place. They live on the coast and over a lake and I think it'll be beautiful and I'm looking forward to going back to Portland. You know, craig and I lived in Portland for four years, right outside in Lake Oswego. I'm hoping to catch up with my nephew there. My brother's oldest son lives there, so we'll see if I can get that together.
Marcy Backhus:I got a dress for the wedding and I have to be honest, I got a dress for the wedding and I have to be honest. So, as you all know, I've lost 50 pounds and well, I've lost it like six months ago, maybe a little longer, but keeping it off, thank goodness. And um, I have not been excited to buy a dress in a very long time. I buy things. Everybody knows I dress nice. I always have. Whether I'm fat or thin, I do like to look as good as I can for the size that I am, but it's been a while, since I've been thin enough to buy a column style long gown and look good in it, and I bought this Navy blue dress and I'm very excited to wear it. So that was exciting. I that came this week and it fit beautifully and I felt beautiful in it. You know, when you feel beautiful in something, it makes a difference.
Marcy Backhus:So the next part is shoes, and I don't know about any of you out there that are above the 50 mark that enjoy buying shoes. Shoes are hard. You know they hurt this. That. The other thing damn it. I used to love shoes and now it's the most difficult part to buy. But I'm working on that. I'll let you know if I find a great pair of dress shoes that fit and don't hurt my feet.
Marcy Backhus:I watched on Saturday, went to the gym, came home. We didn't really have anything to do. Craig had some work to do. So I got hooked on Tulsa King. It is a show on Paramount Plus. It's a CBS thing with Sylvester Stallone and let me tell you it is enjoyable. I watched. I think I started at noon and I finished it I don't know nine or ten o'clock at night. I watched every episode, enjoyed it immensely. It's got a little bit of gore to it, Cause he it. You know he does work for the mob, but I really highly recommend Tulsa King. Again, I've recommended a bad monkey If you haven't watched bad monkey on Apple plus.
Marcy Backhus:Apple also has shrinking, which is coming out. That has it's a second season coming out of shrinking. Also has Shrinking, which is coming out. That has it's the second season coming out of Shrinking and that is with Harrison Ford as a shrink. It's great, it's really good, great cast, very fun, very fun, Fun, fun, fun. Love that one. So Tulsa King, it was my new, my new go-to and I zoomed through the entire season and really liked it. So that's something else I did.
Marcy Backhus:Craig turned 69 on Sunday. Yes, he did. He just came home from running five miles. He's in great shape. I'm in good shape now too, so it's kind of nice. Hopefully we will live a bit longer, because God knows when we'll ever get grandchildren, if Alec will ever give them to us, and how old I will be, and I want to be in good shape and I want to enjoy my grandkids For those and I get a little emotional about this you those of you that know me know I became an aunt when I was 10, twice my two sisters had children.
Marcy Backhus:David was the first and he was born to my sister, cindy, and Patrice was born to my sister, cindy, and Patrice was born to my sister, devin. And unfortunately Patrice and I don't have a strong relationship. We did when she was young. But David and I are like brother and sister, only better because we're not brother and sister, and I love him to death. And being an outside of being a mom. Being a mom was great, but an aunt is different, and boy do I love being an aunt. Being an aunt is great.
Marcy Backhus:What is the other thing? Oh, the other thing we did this week. Our church had the pet blessing, so we threw Patrick in his stroller. Three-legged Patrick took him over there. What a great service. It was not at all what I thought. Our church in California did one, but we lived far away, we didn't have a stroller, we had cats, dogs. We just didn't do it. And here we did it and we met out in our huge patio area where all of the city of Chicago can see us. It's not a concealed patio, it's an open patio.
Marcy Backhus:The choir, the adult and children's choir, all together Beautiful. They started, they proceed into the cathedral and all the animals got to go in the cathedral. I was amazed and Patrick sat in his stroller in the aisle and watched the choir sing and was mesmerized. Then everybody gets a pet blessing and I figured it would be bless you, kitty. You know, bless you, doggie, bless you, kitty. No, they were personalized blessings for every pet and there were probably oh my gosh, easily 80 animals there. It was a delight and Patrick loved it.
Marcy Backhus:No, patrick did not grow a fourth leg, he is still a tripod, but I told him it's a possibility. You know, church is a place of miracles. So we went in with a with a happy heart and we left with a happy heart and, uh, it was, it was quite amazing to me. So that was our week, my week. Anyway, it was, it was quite amazing to me. So that was our week, my week. Anyway, I hope you had a great week. I made it to the gym every day. Been making it to the gym every day this week. So, oh, and I thought I was going to have Nita Wenrick on this week but I was incorrect on my time with her. I am Zooming with her today, so she will be on next week. So if you are looking to see for family members or friends or yourself, the changes in Medicare. Nita, as you know, has her finger on the pulse of Medicare, the Medicare diva that she is, and she will be giving us that information.
Marcy Backhus:So sit back and we are going to talk about our go bag, what needs to be in a go bag? It's important. It's important for most of the country because most places are going to have some sort of weather emergency or natural disaster and you need to be prepared. Okay, we're going to talk about what to put in a go bag and what to take when you're evacuating. This is hard. I you know Milton is about ready to hit. We've already had I can't remember the name of the hurricane last week that did devastation with the amount of water it dropped, but a go bag is super important and the first thing you want to have is water.
Marcy Backhus:And this isn't everything that naturally necessarily fits in a bag. This is stuff you're going to want to put in your car, because I'm going to tell you, right now, while people are evacuating Florida, there is gridlock, and so don't just think you're going to be able to run to the first hotel and live up your life while you're evacuating. That's not necessarily always the case. My friend, just where we lived before, there was a wildfire and was evacuated for three days. They did get into a hotel but it wasn't easy. So water is always important to have whether you're staying or you're going. Food, so have some sort of protein bars, things in your bag. Again, if you get caught in gridlock and you can't move in the car, you need to have something that you can eat.
Marcy Backhus:A battery powered or hand cranked radio is extremely important. Hand crank radio is a radio that you crank it up and it gives it energy, so you don't need batteries. There's flashlights like that too. You also need a flashlight, a good flashlight, and you know, again, these things are going to benefit you in your home as well, if you stay or if you get caught at home in a natural disaster where you can't get out.
Marcy Backhus:Earthquakes are kind of like that. They're not quite like other things, because earthquakes come when you least expect it. Trust me, I've been through a few big ones in California and you don't have any idea. They're coming and they happen and you could have power cut off just out of the blue Wildfires. You somewhat know they're coming Tornadoes, hurricanes. You do get warning you definitely, and you need to have a first aid kit in your home. Alec made me understand the importance of that. I always have one. I also have one in my car. If you already have one in your car, you don't need it in your go bag, but you should have a small one in there in case you can't get into your car If something's already happened. If it's an earthquake and your garage is collapsed, you may not be able to get into your car.
Marcy Backhus:Extra batteries, a whistle? Why extra batteries, a whistle? Why do you need a whistle? A whistle is something you can use to signal. It is a universal cry for help. If you hear a whistle other than at my house, if you hear a whistle, you know it's the doorman down at the Omni getting a taxi for one of the people. They blow that dang whistle all day long. You want to make sure. Here's something that you may not think about, and this is super important in the case of probably tornado Well, I think everything. Because it starts fires. You need dust masks or just masks, like we wore during the pandemic. A mask is super important, mary, when I was talking to her when she was evacuating, she was in her car. It was very smoky and she had a mask in her car, so that was great.
Marcy Backhus:Moist towelettes, garbage bags with plastic ties for personal sanitation. So you're going to want to have to have some small ones, because you never know. Toilet paper or moist wipes super important, I think. These days it's so easy to get a pack of moist wipes I wouldn't even bother with paper, toilet paper it could get ruined. Plastic sheeting, duct tape, scissors you never know and a big plastic tarp you know it may be something that you set on the ground to sit on if you're in a parking lot A wrench or pliers to turn off your utilities.
Marcy Backhus:I had a gas, a specific gas key that turned off our gas and I knew exactly. I had it exactly by the gas turn off so that if there was an earthquake you could turn off the gas. So you want to turn off the gas before you leave your home, if you're leaving it in a hurricane or tornado, because that way if something happens it will not catch on fire as easily. A manual can opener for food, local maps, cell phone with chargers and a backup battery. You should always have a backup battery. Some additional emergency supplies you should have soap, hand sanitizer, something like that, disinfectant wipes.
Marcy Backhus:Okay, these are the personal items. So let's talk about personal items. I always knew I had I have an external hard drive for my computer that my computer backs up to. I would take my external hard drive, not my whole computer, but now I have a laptop and both things have. I would grab my laptop. So you're going to want to grab that For me. That has all my pictures. But now everything's in the cloud. That's why we put things in the cloud, people, because we can get them if we lose the items or the items are destroyed.
Marcy Backhus:Prescription medications make sure you always have I now put I only take two prescriptions, but all my supplements and everything. I have a box. It's got nine slots in it. It's probably eight by four. I take it on vacation with me. I just pour everything in there, a full amount of everything, and that is something I can grab and go. That way I don't have to worry about eight by four. I take it on vacation with me. I just pour everything in there, a full amount of everything, and that is something I can grab and go. That way I don't have to worry about all the individual bottles, but make sure you have that.
Marcy Backhus:Make sure you take non-prescription take If you have. Um, all those things should be in one place. I should say I have a Rubbermaid that has all medications uh, you know, cold medicine, blah, blah, blah. Contact lens solution, infant formulas bottle. Make sure your pet stuff is ready. Have things for your pets, have a way. Make sure that you have containers to grab them. If there's ever a fire in your home and you have cats, grab them, throw them in a pillowcase, take them out, in that if you can't find your carrier, you know better they get out and get away than they don't. Make sure now, this is something I don't have and I think I need to do better at this.
Marcy Backhus:Have some cash somewhere, because if electricity goes out hurricane, tornado, earthquake the first thing that goes out in earthquake, I'm telling you now, is electricity. Make sure you have cash, because cash is king. Cash will always be king. Make sure you have cash because cash is king. Cash will always be king. If they don't have electricity and the local bodega opens up, they're going to want cash. They can get their doors open. They're going to want cash.
Marcy Backhus:Make sure you have all your family documents. You should have your Dead Marcy notebook. And if you don't have a Dead Marcy notebook, you need one. And you can go back to episode one of my podcast aging ain't for sissies, and you can learn about the dead Marcy notebook. And I'm happy to send you the guts to a dead Marcy notebook so that you can create one yourself. I can send you an electronic file. But grab your dead Marcy notebook. It should have all your important family documents in it. So that's good to go.
Marcy Backhus:Other things you should think about warm blankets, sleeping bags, clothes, fire extinguisher, waterproof matches are always a must. Any personal hygiene items you may need. You should probably have a like they have two gallon Ziploc bags and you can do this and that you can put um paper cups, paper plates, paper towels, plastic utensils and that. Make sure you grab paper and pencil. And the last thing I would say grab a pack of cards, a deck of cards. A deck of cards can keep you entertained and the kids entertained for a very long time. Maybe two decks, one for the kids, one for you. But card games are amazing. And if you're going to be in a Red Cross shelter, so look at these things. You could be in a hotel but you could be in a Red Cross shelter. Well, red Cross shelter, you're going to want some. You're going to need these things for yourself. Don't always think you're going to make it to a hotel, because they fill up fast in these situations, and you may be in a Red Cross shelter and a state, a state away.
Marcy Backhus:Make sure you have your animals taken care of. Make sure that you have what they need their food. You have extra food. You have extra medication for them. You want to maintain this kit. You want to keep the basics. There are things here that obviously you need on a daily basis, but you want to keep a basic kit that's ready to go, so you only have to fill in with the last things that I talked about. But that kit with the first aid flashlight, all those things should be in a backpack and should be somewhere that you can just grab, because, worst case scenario, you grab that and you've got the basics.
Marcy Backhus:In California, you have to think about where you store things, because if there's an earthquake and walls crash down, you know I kept things in a trash can and that way, if anything happened, I knew exactly where they were A trash can that was not used. Make sure you keep emergency kits in your in your car as well. I have you know. Anytime I'm crossing the desert, I make sure I you know even when I was going to visit family make sure you have water. Water is key. I hope none of you ever have to use this type of thing, but I thought it was important to talk about. There are.
Marcy Backhus:Our weather patterns are changing. That's a fact. Storms are getting stronger, that's a fact. Wildfires are becoming way more prevalent. Part of that is because of more storms, the West Coast especially. You're getting more storms, lightnings, I mean.
Marcy Backhus:Yes, we have fires started by the firebugs, the idiots. The last one this is irritating the last one where my girlfriend was evacuated, where I used to live. That fire was started because the city or the county, excuse me had decided to move boulders on the hottest day. It was like 111. They were moving boulders with heavy equipment that started the fire on the driest, hottest day of the year. That's not something they should have been doing. That is stupidity. And 20,000, over 20,000 acres burned and 20,000, over 20,000 acres burned, over 200 structures burned. Animals lost their lives. I'm not sure if any people did, but you know, we don't need just mother nature. We've got idiots out there making decisions that put our lives at risk. So keep in mind that a natural disaster or a disaster can happen to you anytime.
Marcy Backhus:If you're driving, and you're driving in weather, it could happen. I mean, how many times do we see here out in the Midwest, you know, people stranded on the road because of snow in the winter. If you're driving here in the Midwest or a place where you could be stranded by snow, you want to make sure you have blankets in your car. You have just buy a box of protein bars from uh and a case of water from Costco and throw it in your trunk. Well, I guess in here we can't put a case of water. It would freeze. But you know, make sure you've got protein bars and when you travel, have water on the inside of your car so that you have something to drink in case you're stranded. It's important. Or better yet, if the weather's bad, don't drive anywhere, that's my feeling. But or better yet, if the weather's bad, don't drive anywhere. That's my feeling. But sometimes we don't have a choice. Well, that's my emergency plan.
Marcy Backhus:It's a little somber. I am thinking about the people that are in the way of Milton, thinking about the animals, I'm praying for them Said it's the worst storm in 100 years to hit Florida and we've seen some bad ones. So it's the worst storm in 100 years to hit Florida and we've seen some bad ones, so it's not looking good, all right. Well, I'm going to give you a little fun fact. We'll lighten it up before we're done, so hang in there, all right. So here's a fun fact. It's kind of a gruesome one, but it's a fun fact.
Marcy Backhus:It's kind of a gruesome one, but it's a fun fact. Human teeth are the only part of the body that can't heal themselves. Hmm, I never really thought about that, but that's true. Yeah, interesting, right. Also, I had heard this this is kind of funny when they came up with health insurance back in the day. Okay, why did they decide that eyes and teeth were not going to count in health insurance? Why do we have to have separate insurance? I'll let you think about that. If you have an answer, email me at insidemarciesmind at gmailcom. You can get all my episodes on my website, inside Marcy's mindcom, and let's see what else do I need to tell you? Oh, you can find my episodes anywhere Spotify, I heart, radio, you name it Apple. They're there. Share them with your friends, please. Let's grow this platform. Thanks so much for listening and go out and do something positive.
