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We were at the Theater watching a movie, right when things started to get good, boom, everything shut down and a few emergency lights come on. They tell us to stay, they are working on getting everything back on. My child decides she must use the RR, so I take her. She keeps saying she's scared and wants to leave. Bless her, her alarm bells were going off. I reassure her that we will be ok, just stay calm.

Am I afraid? No. Am I worried because it's so dark and people are wandering around? No. Why? Because I'm prepared! I have a flashlight & mace on my keychain, and my CH on my side. No sheep in the dark here my friends. Everything worked out ok. They eventually came back and said no go, theater has to shut down. We got free meals and passes to return another time. And best of all we left safely. This was a good teachable moment for my youngest as well. It just goes to show you never know when you may need your preparedness accessories.

A small pocketable LED flashlight is part of my EDC, along with my pocket knife and cellphone. I never leave the house without them. It seems strange to me that even people who do not go about strapped will neglect to have a pocket knife and flashlight along.

Some cell phones make excellent flash lights.

To use my Blackberry light I open the video camera app and hit the space bar. (it doesnt record)

Do a google on your particular phone and you just may find that yours too has this ability, and if not, there is an app you can download....beware of the freeware apps as they may contain malware.

I was in a Cabelas that lost power during a thunderstorm years ago. It was never so dark and quiet in a public place! It's good that you were prepared. A flashlight (Streamlight Microstream) is one of the things that always goes in my pocket when I leave the house. And for those who have Android phones you can usually add a widget to one of your screens that will allow you to quickly turn your "flashlight" on.

CoffeeNut wrote:I was in a Cabelas that lost power during a thunderstorm years ago. It was never so dark and quiet in a public place! It's good that you were prepared. A flashlight (Streamlight Microstream) is one of the things that always goes in my pocket when I leave the house. And for those who have Android phones you can usually add a widget to one of your screens that will allow you to quickly turn your "flashlight" on.

Cabela's during a blackout? Campout time! They might find me asleep in one of those tents on a cot. And with all those stuffed animals it would be pretty cool.

The one piece of EDC gear I use even more than my knife is my flashlight.

On nearly every one of the few occasions when I didn't have it with me, I regretted it. Even in broad daylight I find it useful, like when I had to look under the hood of my car and could not see anything in the shadows because of the contrast with noon-day texas sun.

The whole reason I put the mini flashlight on my keychain was due to a power outage in Target 3 years ago. It scared me & my daughter pretty good since we couldn't see our hands in front of our faces. I told myself that would never happen again.

My purse is not the easiest place to find things, but my bulky keychains are easily found due to the mace.

I've not considered a full knife before. I have about a 2 inch antique knife on my keychain that I use to open boxes with.
What kind would you recommend for a woman?

CHLLady wrote:The whole reason I put the mini flashlight on my keychain was due to a power outage in Target 3 years ago. It scared me & my daughter pretty good since we couldn't see our hands in front of our faces. I told myself that would never happen again.

My purse is not the easiest place to find things, but my bulky keychains are easily found due to the mace.

I've not considered a full knife before. I have about a 2 inch antique knife on my keychain that I use to open boxes with.
What kind would you recommend for a woman?

I wouldn't think a knife for a woman would be any different than one for a man. And, since there's a better chance of a purse being involved it might be easier for a woman to have a wider selection for a knife than a man.

Here's a couple of threads with many different options and some discussion on EDC knives.
http://texaschlforum.com/viewtopic.php? ... =EDC+knife" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://texaschlforum.com/viewtopic.php? ... =EDC+knife" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I have a small bright LED light, but it has the button on the end. It always gets turned on in my pocket. After changing out the CR123 battery a couple times, I stopped carrying it. Does anyone make a small self-defense or tactical flashlight that has a cover or cap over the button?

The power went out on the escalator at the mall last week....I was stuck on that thing for 2 hours!

Lately I carry a Fenix pd35 flashlight. While not extremely small, it was easy to get used to carrying it clipped inside my front pants pocket. I've been carrying a knife that way (on the other side) for years.

It has five power levels, from "Eco" (10 lumens - just enough glow to see your way around) to "Turbo" (850 lumens - burn out their retinas), plus strobe. You select the power level with a side button and when you click the tail cap button, it turns on at the last power level you used.

It can either use two CR123 disposable batteries or one 18650 rechargeable. I already had several 18650s and a charger, so the cost of ownership is nil.

You can easily find these lights for a good price on Amazon or eBay.

I looked at that light on amazon yesterday. That is one bright little light.

I carry some sort of S&W "tactical" light on my belt (chosen because it was on sale, not for any amazing tactical features). It's nicely sized, seems solid, and I like that I can use it on two different light levels. Also, the belt pouch for it includes a pocket for spare batteries. Most of its use is for things like checking for toys under the couch or items lost under seats in the car, but one reason I carry it is in case of a blackout in a large building. You never know.

As far as a knife, I have a basic CRKT folding knife I got in high school. Nothing fancy, but it works. Over time two of the little screws that hold the clip in place fell out and got lost. I recently tried to order replacements and the company doesn't have that type of screws any more. Instead, they offered that if I returned the knife they would give me credit for the full original MSRP to put toward a replacement of my choice. Given the age of the knife and the fact that nothing was actually wrong with it, I thought that was an impressive offer. I wound up finding replacement screws locally because I like the knife, but I love customer service like that. I keep the knife clipped in my pocket, and a Leatherman Micra in the little tiny pocket that's inside women's jeans pockets. The Leatherman has scissors, screwdrivers, tweezers, and other things that come in handy all the time. It also has a knife blade, but it's a little small and harder to get to than I like.