}

Friday, July 06, 2007

AmeriNZ #23 – Get Thru


Episode 23 is now available, and it's free no matter where you get it from. You can listen to it or download it through the player at the bottom of the post here, or subscribe for free through iTunes here (you must have the free iTunes player installed). You can also listen to it for free through the player on my MySpace page.

Today I talk about preparedness for an emergency, which is important in a geologically active country like New Zealand. This was prompted by a mailer from the government we received the other day. The “Get Ready, Get Thru” campaign is designed to help people prepare for natural disaster. I talk about some of what that means for ordinary New Zealanders. As it happens, some unusual tornadoes struck New Zealand this week. I also talk a bit about how it was for me, coming from the Midwest of America where tornadoes and winter storms were the main threat—apart from the New Madrid Fault. A theory about problems with uploading. Incidental music at the beginning is by Nick Murray from the Podsafe Music Network, and the closing song is by Spring Heeled Jacks Original Swinging Jass Band, also from the Podsafe Music Network. Leave a comment or send an email to ameriz[at}yahoo.com.


Get AmeriNZ Podcast for free on iTunes

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

As you were describing all the things you have to gather and put aside for an emergency reminded me of Y2K when we were told to do the same. And then the same after 911 when we had to be prepared for an attack. Oddly strange, I never got anything together for either. I don't have anything prepared for an emergency. Maybe I should. Did you get all that stuff together and are you ready?

Unknown said...

(damn you Archer!)

The ex-boyscout in me feels the need to point out that if you are able to boil water, the storage of potable water isn't that big of a deal. Of course, having three days worth of potable water is a convienience thing.

Here in Florida we use our bathtubs to store water, but we get more lead time with Hurricanes than you would get with a Volcano.

On the subject of "podsafe" music, I would suggest checking out http://www.jamendo.com which is a collection of music covered under the creative commons.

Tim Corrimal said...

I had no idea that New Zealand was an earthquake zone. But I guess it's like living in Tornado Alley when I was growing up in Texas and Oklahoma. When it happened, the sirens blew and everyone's attitude was, oh, it's another Tornado. Look outside and see if we should go to the storm cellar.

It's like living in the city. You get desensitized to the danger around you and just deal with it day to day as it happens.

Great show. Sorry I haven't commented it a while.

Walt said...

Hi Arthur,

Your talk of the Get Ready, Get Thru campaign makes me so happy I don't live in New Zealand. My partner is very reactionary when it comes to stuff like this. Reactionary to the point of overkill, actually. We were living on things he bought for Y2K for months and months into 2000. I can only imagine what sort of mess he'd be working on right now.

I haven't commented on your show before, mainly because I only just recently started listening. I'm through all the shows now and there were many things I wanted to comment on, but it's probably too late for most of them. On the subject of your accent (bet you thought this topic was over already!), to me, you definitely have that upper mid-west thing going on. Bordering on Canadian, actually. I don't know what you sounded like pre-New Zealand, so I don't know if your current influences brought out a more Canadian sound to your accent or now. I don't really hear very much New Zealand in you, except when you say words like day. Then it's very obvious.

I'm kind of curious as to what was the biggest big of culture shock for you when you first arrived in New Zealand. Also, when was it that New Zealand first starting feeling like home to you. Is there anything American you still miss to this day? And is there anything you've discovered in New Zealand that you can't imagine living without (Nigel and the pets excluded)?

I'm really enjoying your podcast. I don't think a lot of people have the ability to sound comfortable doing a single person podcast. You certainly do and that makes listening to your show all the better.

-walt

Anonymous said...

I grew up in Illinois so have a lot of memories of the ol siren. Now living on an island I have to worry about hurricanes too - neither are much fun!

Anyway, thanks for playing our music :)

Josh/Spring Heeled Jacks Original Swinging Jass Band

Arthur Schenck said...

Archerr: Yes, the stuff for the Get Thru kit is like the Y2K thing (and bird flu panic). No, we still haven't done anything about getting ours complete, though we probably actually have enough stuff to "get thru" for three days. I suppose I could always drink wine, eh? Not as good as water, I know, but I probably wouldn't mind crapping in a rubbish bag nearly as much.

Speaking of crap, I actually downloaded the official recommendations and such after 9/11 and distinctly remember that duct tape and plastic sheeting were on the list to "protect" you in the event of an attack with a chemical, biological or nuclear "dirty" bomb. As if it really would.

Daniel: You're quite right and people may be able to fill their baths for a short while after an event--depends on where and how bad it is. We can get cyclones, which are what hurricanes are called here, and there's more warning for them--but they're rare and not really severe enough to worry about--not yet, anyway.

I checked out the podsafe music site a little, but apparently to download I need to install bit torrent (which I haven't yet) or something else I haven't heard of, but I'll check it out more thoroughly when I have more time (busy week this past week).

Tim: You know, tornadoes always scared me more than potential threats here ever have. Part of it was the long process--watch to warning to sirens, then waiting to see if things cleared-up. And this happened every year. The events here hardly ever happen, so it's easy to forget about them completely (in Auckland, anyway).

Don't worry about commenting. Of course I love comments, but like Archerr says, if you feel obligated it's not fun anymore. Comment when and as much as you want, but don't ever feel obligated to do so! After all, I don't get around to commenting on your shows all that often, either...

Walt: Welcome, Walt, and thanks for the comments!

I think we're near the opposite of your partner--taking things a little too much for granted. But I know it's sensible to be prepared, and I really do want to get there. Perhaps we will--without overkill, hopefully.

Always feel free to comment on any show--Blogger sends me an email to let me know (so I don't have to monitor them for new comments or anything). As for the accent, no, it's on of two subjects that will not die. I often get people in NZ thinking I'm Canadian, actually, These days, maybe that's safer.

Those are all excellent questions--so much so I'm going to talk about them on my next podcast!

Thanks for the kind words, too. I'll be honest: It's good to get positive feedback--it's really encouraging.

Josh: The first time I encountered the siren was when we moved to Lake County, Illinois when I was nine. They had a volunteer fire service and used a siren. Scared the crap out of me every time. They still do--I'm just cooler about it now.

Thank you for putting your music up in a podsafe environment--I really admire that! I apologise for screwing up the link (just realised it today and fixed it). I plan on playing some more of your music in future podcasts.