I’ve been a prepper just about all my life and have no intention of being stressed by a national emergency, that is why I like simple, cheap, long term solutions to basic issues and good lighting, monitoring temperatures inside and outside and in various rooms such as where my water pipes are and my food storage room, being able to read 12 hours a day/night, playing some CDs, listening to the radio, having a couple of good throwing flashlights for outside noise checking, pretty much makes life normal for me.
Although I live in a very small 2 bedroom house, my survival situation is pretty good as far as being able to not have my water pipes or canned goods freeze, without electricity my temp sensors would let me know with an alarm that I need to get up and run my propane camp stove for a short time to keep the interior temperature above 25 or so until that New Mexico sun brings the temp back up through my very large southern window in the kitchen, those nights would be very rare in this house.
That Renogy Portable E.Flex Monocrystalline 10W Plus Solar Panel was only $12.99 (not $12.00) 2 or 3 days ago, I also have their 5 watt version I bought on sale some time ago.
I grew up in hurricane country and remember getting by for days, up to 12 days with lousy lighting and flashlights, in a long term situation I want as much normalcy as possible and as long as they keep the water on, or at least get it back on within 5 or 6 months, household batteries will keep me pretty normal, being a book person is a huge advantage in what other people consider a massive traumatic blackout emergency, I’m not a TV person and never have been, don’t own one or want one, so losing electricity doesn’t shake me like other people.
Having close to 2 years of food, good winter clothes, lots of backpacking/camping experience in winter, including to 30 below zero, confidence in my life experience and mental type, I have a more relaxed atitude about the survival stuff than most people, that’s why the Rambo/Roadwarrior stuff doesn’t interest me much, as it is I have plenty of solar yard light variations which can light my house and charge my AA and AAA batteries, but I do like the luxury of these new lanterns I got, they are like having regular electric light bulbs on, the diffusion is the best I have ever seen.
Energizer LED Camping Lantern
This is the AA Nimh cell phone charger I have and like. 4 AA Battery Power Emergency Charger
Nimh batteries are great and have many uses, including the old garage sale items you can find, such as CD players, boom boxes and such.