World War II

I’ve written before about the neccesity of labeling vintage photos. Not surprisingly then when I saw this headline in my RSS reader, I clicked over to read the material - World War II Wife Cherishes Photos Saved from Hurricane.

Many of my friends felt that I went a little preparedness whacko after Hurricane Katrina. Yes, I have a couple of backpacks full of emergency supplies. I’m more likely to depend on myself after that debacle than to wait for my government to help me out. In addition to buying water purification tablets, a hand-cranked flashlight/radio combo, and a bunch of canned goods, I also bought a couple of flash drives. You know, those little USB “thumb” drives that are so popular these days. I scanned all my most important documents and placed them on a thumb drive, which is with me at all times.

The second drive is for photos. I’ve been into digital photography since 1999 but I also scanned all the irreplaceable family photos in my possession (some dating back to the Civil War), the ones I’d be heartbroken to lose. All those images and the super important ones I’ve taken myself that were already in digital format are safely on that drive. Both drives are in an old Altoids tin in my purse and there are back-ups on an additional two thumb drives in my emergency bags.

The WWII widow profiled in the news story said, “Let me tell you one thing: If you are ever in a hurricane, make sure to get your photographs out.” It doesn’t matter if we’re talking fire, flood, or storm, take measures to protect your invaluable photos. Thumb drives are solid state — no moving points — and small enough to carry on your person. It’s not a bad idea to put them in something reasonably waterproof (a plain old bag will do.) With most of these “thumb” devices now selling for under $50 (you probably don’t need more than 1 or 2gb for these purposes) this is one of the least expensive and most important insurance policies you’ll ever buy.

WWII, vintage photo, preservation