In Oklahoma, disasters are [sadly] not an uncommon thing. Think about the past 5-10 years...how many times have you been without electricity? If you live in Moore, probably a LOT! {Ah, the joys of living in Tornado Alley...}
Tornadoes, hurricanes, tsunamis, floods, terrorist threats, etc. all should scare you just enough to be prepared.
When the May 3rd tornado hit Moore in 1999, we were without electricity for about a week. It was a very long week. The national guard wouldn't let us leave our neighborhood, so we were stuck. We had very limited supplies, but luckily we still had water and a gas cook top.
When I saw this blog post, I though it was a pretty smart thing to have, even if just for emergencies. Trust me, I have no current plan to start doing my laundry by hand. But, if I'm without electricity for any extended period of time, I certainly like the option of having clean clothes.
Even if you're not on the homesteader path, or you're repulsed by the thought of off-grid living, you should still check out the redneck washing machine.
