Bottom Line: Better than Nothing, The Price is Right, and Free Roadside Assistance.
If you’re looking for a rudimentary set of emergency gear to toss in your car, this one is by no means the deluxe version. But the price is right (click this linkto see it on Amazon), and it’s all certainly better than nothing. It won’t take care of all of your emergency needs, but it might help if you’re in a tough situation and nothing else is available. Santa Claus brought me one, and I’m honoring him by putting it in my car.
The two biggest pieces of gear are the jumper cables, and a tow strap. The jumper cables look good, but it’s hard to tell how thick the conductors are under the thick insulation. Chances are, they’re much smaller than they appear. But if you have a dead battery, and someone willing to give you a jump start, they’ll probably work, although you might need to let your battery charge for a little while.
The tow strap is 12 feet long, and says that it has a 1500 pound working load. If your car is hopelessly mired in mud, that’s probably not good enough. But if it’s slightly stuck in snow, maybe applying 1500 pounds might get it out. Again, it’s better than nothing. (But I would make sure that nobody is standing near it when in use. If it snaps under 1500 pounds of load, I bet it would sting if it snapped you.)
The set also includes a little first aid kit (no more than a few bandages), a headlamp, complete with AAA batteries, a thin but serviceable blanket, a set of cloth work gloves, and a cheap rain poncho. It comes in a fairly durable looking carrying case, which sports a reflectorized triangle to mark your car in case of emergency.
Possibly the best value, though, is an automatic membership in a roadside assistance plan, named, like the product itself, Justincase. It purports to be a AAA-style assistance plan. After sending in the card that came with the kit, you can call a toll-free number, and they’ll come out and provide roadside assistance at no cost. A card is included, which you are directed to send in care of Vehicle Administrative Services of Dallas, TX. If you want to read the fine print of the details of the plan, click the image at left for a full-size image.
The card asks for your name and address, as well as the vehicle description and VIN. It doesn’t ask for credit card numbers or anything, so it doesn’t look too risky. We already have AAA, but it won’t hurt to have a second number available to call in an emergency. Again, I have some doubts, but the price is right. And it looks like it’s better than nothing.
Update: I sent in the card to sign up for the roadside assistance, but after a few months, I never heard anything back. I wasn’t really counting on it, but I wouldn’t buy this kit for that reason.
My friend Volodymyr “Wlad” Gurtovy, US7IGN, has published a book about his experiences living in Kyiv, Ukraine, in the middle of a war. Wlad, like me, is an attorney, and lived a middle-class existence similar to mine, until Russia invaded eastern Ukraine in 2014. He and his family then relocated to Kyiv, but with Russia’s 2022 invasion, he was once again in the middle of the war. His wife and teen son and daughter evacuated to Poland, where they were able to find an apartment, thanks in part to the generosity of friends in America and elsewhere.
He remained behind, partly because he was prohibited by law from leaving, but mostly because he felt the need to stay behind and defend his native land.
The most compelling part of his book is his account of the mundane details of life in the middle of a war. Wlad lives in a fifth-floor apartment building in the middle of a city of 2.8 million (prewar population). Some days, the supermarkets are open, and some days they are not. The mail continues to go through, but some days, it’s too dangerous to go to the post office to pick it up. Power, water, and heat are sometimes turned on, but they’re often unavailable. When he needed dental work, he was surprised to find the dental office near his home open, staffed by dental students. There are even a few accounts of his visits to court on behalf of some pro bono client. To me, the descriptions of how he navigates this dystopia are fascinating, especially since his life prior to the war wasn’t too different from mine. Many who follow this blog have an interest in emergency preparedness, and I’m sure they will also find this book compelling.
Of course, since Wlad is a ham, radio is a main character in the story. He gets much of his information from the broadcast radio, and one of his main roles has become that of radio repairman so that others can remain in touch when their radio has problems. He also recounts listening in directly to Russian pilots and both Russian and Ukrainian troops.
As the title suggests, it’s written in chronological format, and you’ll have a hard time putting it down, wondering what’s going to happen the next day.
If you feel moved to provide additional assistance to Wlad’s family, please see our crowdfunding campaign to help with their needs at GoFundMe or GiveSendGo.
Some links on this site are affiliate links, meaning t this site earns a small commission if you make a purchase after using the link.
Bottom Line: Relatively expensive, but good way to add some variety to your survival kit.
We’ve previously reported about the importance of a car winter survival kit, to make sure you have enough food in the car to keep yourself reasonably comfortable if stranded. Recently, for example, a winter storm stranded motorists on Interstate 95 in Virginia for over 24 hours. As we showed previously, the kit in our car contains mostly dry food, and we have water and a means of cooking in the car.
One item that was lacking from the original kit was meat, or any type of protein for that matter. I corrected that after Christmas by buying a Hickory Farms meat and cheese gift package at a steep after-Christmas closeout discount, similar to the one shown at right.
Another item recently caught my eye, and that was the pouch of Great Value Pulled Pork in BBQ Sauce from Walmart. Its already cooked, so it only needs to be warmed up. Of course, in an emergency, it could be eaten cold. It’s best on a bun, but any kind of bread or crackers would work fine. You could also eat it right out of the pouch, or together with one of the other dishes in the survival kit, such as the rice or mashed potatoes.
To test it at home, I was originally going to heat it up in the microwave, but I realized that I should just warm it up as I would in the car. Since I have in the survival kit an emergency stove and a pan, I decided to duplicate this at home. To keep from getting the pan dirty, I heated up water and simply placed the pouch in the water. Of course, in an emergency, if water is short, you can still use the water for drinking or cooking. More likely than not, if I had to heat it up in the car while stranded, I would be using melted snow.
The finished product was better than I expected. It made a reasonably filling lunch, and in an emergency, a hot sandwich (or even just hot meat out of the pouch) would seem luxurious.
This product wouldn’t be viable for a large portion of your emergency food storage. The 2.8 ounce pouch cost $1.28. It provides 11 grams of protein, and only 130 calories. By contrast, a jar of peanut butter, for only a little bit more money, provides 2520 calories and 98 grams of protein. According to Harvard University, the recommended daily protein intake is 0.36 grams per pound. So a person weighing 150 pounds should get about 54 grams per day. This means that for long-term storage, the peanut butter is a much better value. But for a day or two, the pulled pork would add a few calories to your diet, provide a welcome hot meal, albeit a small one, and provide you with some protein. And it’s quite possible that the contents of the car witner survival kit will be frozen when you need them. Thawing a pouch of meat is probably a lot easier than figuring out how to thaw a jar of peanut butter.
The package I bought had a “best by” date of November 2024, almost three years in the future. So I’ll definitely be tossing some in the car survival kit. I hope I don’t have to use them until a future family survival picnic.
Incidentally, if the package looks familiar, that’s because this type of packaging is also used for tuna, another possible choice for the survival kit.
Some links on this site are affiliate links, meaning this site earns a small commission if you make a purchase after clicking the link. However, the Walmart link above is not an affiliate link.
Shown above is a molecule of ethyl alcohol, also known as ethanol. If you ignite it with a spark, it will burn. This is not rocket science. (Come to think of it, though, if you use it as rocket fuel, then it is rocket science.) Gasoline (or petrol, as our friends across the pond like to call it) is a mixture of molecules, most of which look very similar to the one above. If you ignite it with a spark, it will also burn. The difference, however, is the “O“. Gasoline doesn’t have any oxygen atoms. To burn it, you need to supply all of the oxygen from another source. Fortunately, that’s easy to do, since we live in an atmosphere consisting partly of oxygen, and it’s free for the taking.
But this means that for a given amount of fuel, the ethanol will have less energy content: If you burn gasoline, you can use the free oxygen that is floating around. If you use ethanol, then you are paying for some of the oxygen, which you could have gotten for free.
For this reason, I’ve heard many people explain that you shouldn’t use ethanol as fuel, because your fuel mileage will be lower. But that’s not the end of the discussion: If you’re like me, you are really concerned about saving money, and your main concern is which fuel is cheaper.
A Real World Comparison Test
I’ve heard many persons express their opinion as to the relative fuel economy, but I’ve never heard anyone actually test it, so I decided to do so myself. I recently had to drive from St. Paul, MN, to Escanaba, MI, to do an FCC Great Lakes Ship Radio Inspection. I drove eastbound using e85, a mixture of approximately 85% ethanol and 15% gasoline, and drove westbound with gasoline (which is actually e10, 90% gasoline and 10% ethanol). For the nitpickers, here are the conditions of the test:
To make sure I was able to purge almost all of the E85 from the system before the return trip, I tested the mileage from St. Paul, MN, to Marinette, WI, short of my final destination. I started with a full tank, and upon arriving in Marinette, I checked the cumulative mileage and then added about 6 gallons. I also added a few gallons in Escanaba, MI, about 56 miles away. When I arrived back in Marinette, I was down to about a quarter tank, at which point I filled with gasoline (actually, e10) for the trip home. So almost all of the e85 had been purged from the system for the trip home.
My vehicle is a 2014 Dodge Journey with the 3.6 liter 6 cylinder engine. The EPA estimated highway mileage is 25 MPG with gasoline, and 18 MPG with e85. The two endpoints have similar elevations (795 feet in St. Paul, versus 594 in Marinette). Winds on the day of my trip were light, and whenever I did see flags moving in the breeze, the prevailing wind seemed to be from the north. So there should be no effect from a headwind or tailwind. I took an identical route both directions, mostly over four lane freeways, but a small portion over county highways suggested by Google. In other words, the driving conditions both directions were more or less identical. The average mileage reading was taken from the car’s computer, which was reset after each fill-up.
The average mileage using e85 was 21.6 MPG. The average mileage using gasoline (actually e10) was 26.4 MPG. As noted above, the mileage with ethanol was lower, since the fuel has a lower energy content. The real question is which fuel is cheaper.
To make the comparison fair, I’ll use the prices at the same station, the one where I bought the e85: The e85 cost $2.229 per gallon. In other words, it cost me $2.229 to drive 21.6 miles, or 10.32 cents per mile. (I actually used a loyalty card, which brought the cost down to $2.029 per gallon, or 9.4 cents per mile).
The gasoline I bought for the return trip cost $3.239 per gallon, since one gallon allows me to drive 26.4 miles, that means I spent 12.3 cents per mile. But in fairness, if I had bought that gas for the eastbound trip at the same place where I bought the e85, it would have cost $3.099 per gallon, which works out to 11.7 cents per mile.
In other words, it was cheaper to drive using the e85: 10.3 cents per mile versus 11.7 cents per mile. In other words, the e85 is 12% cheaper than using gasoline.
It should be noted that these figures are based upon the price at one particular station, a Holiday gas station. You can view the current prices at this station at this link. Some gas stations sell e85, but at a much smaller discount over the price of regular gasoline. In fact, I’ve occasionally seeing a station inexplicably selling e85 for more than the price of regular gasoline. Obviously, it makes no sense to buy to buy there. To be economical, the price of e85 needs to be below 21.6/26.4 = 82% the price of regular gas. In my case, the price of e85 was 74% the cost, and thus a clear bargain.
Other Considerations
There are a couple of other factors to keep in mind. Even though the name of the fuel is “e85” the exact blend can vary. During the winter months, the gasoline content is higher, and I have noticed that stations do not adjust the price based upon the exact mix. So during the winter, the e85 might be an even greater bargain.
Also, I have not measured it, but I have noticed that when I have a mixture that is around 50% ethanol and 50% gasoline, I don’t notice much mileage difference between it and 100% gasoline. So even though the energy content is lower, the actual effect on mileage might not be linear. It would be interesting to repeat this experiment with different blends.
I’m not sure of this, but I suspect that for applications requiring more power (such as towing), gasoline would have a greater advantage. But again, I’ve not tested this hypothesis.
And you will certainly have more range using gasoline than you would ethanol. So if cost isn’t an issue, but you need to drive as far as possible before refueling, then you will be able to drive 22% further by using gasoline.
I suspect that ethanol might have a greater cost advantage for high altitude driving. The reason why there is a lower energy content is because the fuel contains oxygen, which is available at no cost from the atmosphere. At higher elevations, the additional oxygen in the fuel might be an advantage.
Precisely because it has a lower energy content, ethanol also increases the octane rating of the fuel, so it is an inexpensive option for use in high compression engines.
Ideas for Young Scientists
If students are looking for an interesting science fair project, I hope my little experiment has given you some ideas. Even if you don’t have a driver’s license, you can recruit your parents to keep track of mileage when driving, and compare different fuels, or different types of driving, to see which is the most economical.
Interestingly, I exceeded the EPA mileage estimates for both fuels. There was a time when the EPA estimates were overly optimistic, but I guess those days are gone.
But Ethanol Will Clog My Fuel Filter!
Someone will invariably claim that ethanol clogs fuel filters, and I want to explain what is really happening. Alcohol can mix with both water and gasoline. Water, by itself, cannot mix with gasoline. If you have 100% gasoline in your tank and some water is added, it is heavier than gasoline and will settle to the sump at the bottom of the tank, which is below the point where it can be drawn out by the fuel pump. It doesn’t do any harm there, as long as it stays below the level of the fuel intake. But it does dissolve dirt, and that dirt has nowhere to go but stay in the water.
Eventually, if water keeps getting added, it will continue to collect. If it ever gets up to the level of the intake, then this will be a problem, since water mixed with dirt will be going to the engine rather than gasoline. The fuel filter will clean out the dirt, but the engine will try to burn the water, and water doesn’t burn.
When ethanol was first added to gasoline in the U.S., this meant that it found its way, for the first time, into cars with water in the bottom of the tank. The alcohol allowed the water and dirt to mix with the gasoline. The dirt, which may have collected since the car was new, went into the fuel filter, as the filter was designed to do. This is how ethanol got a reputation for clogging fuel filters.
But now, virtually all gasoline sold in the U.S. contains at least 10% ethanol, and virtually every car on the road has been burning 10% ethanol for years. Water never gets a chance to build up in the tank. If there is dirt in the tank, it comes out constantly. Unlike the time the car got its first tank of ethanol, years’ accumulation of dirt is not coming out all at once to suddenly clog the filter. So after that initial shock, ethanol actually corrects the problem, and also prevents gas line freeze. In the days before ethanol fuel, in cold climates, people bought a product called Heet to prevent fuel line freezing. This consisted either of ethanol or isopropyl alcohol. Since ethanol is now included in the fuel, this is no longer necessary, and you rarely hear of gas lines freezing.
Some links on this page are affiliate links, meaning that this site earns a small commission if you make a purchase after clicking the link.
A motorcycle can provide transportation independence, but the time occasionally comes when the thing has to be moved by other than its own power. If you don’t own a suitable truck, this can be a problem. Even if you do own a truck large enough to haul it, getting it loaded is generally a pain.
My son owns an Icebear Rocket 49cc scooter. Even though it weighs “only” 220 pounds, and we have transported it in the back of a minivan, it’s not ideal. Fighting 220 pounds into the car, without a real ramp, is no fun, and there’s always the chance of oil or gas spilling inside the vehicle. So when we recently had to take it to the shop, we decided that there must be an easier way. And, indeed, there is, in the form of U-Haul’s motorcycle trailer.
I’m always a little bit leery of U-Haul, and I once spent a few hours at a loading dock with one of their trucks as the U-Haul mechanic did his best with bailing wire and duct tape to get the thing running. And whenever I see one of their trucks driving down the road, I do my best to keep my distance. They paint them bright orange for a reason, and that’s to warn other motorists that the driver has never driven a truck in his or her lifetime, and probably has no clue as to what they are doing.
But there’s not much that can go wrong with a trailer. And for the reasonable price of $14.95 per day, U-Haul has a motorcycle trailer. I decided to give it a try, and it was definitely a bargain.
The trailer is just a flatbed trailer, but it’s optimized for motorcycles. The bed measures 7’8″ by 3’9.5″, and would accommodate even the largest of bikes. It was certainly more than adequate for our little scooter. The tailgate folds down easily to form a ramp. Other reviews have noted that it has plenty of ground clearance for most bikes. In our case, with the scooter, it just barely cleared, so in retrospect, we should have propped up the ramp an inch or two. But the bike easily rolled right in, and the gate was very easy to raise and lower. When loaded, the gate is held in place with two pins, making a visible indication that it’s securely closed.
The trailer was clean and well maintained, and seemed safe to drive. It used what looked to be full-size automotive tires, rather than the smaller trailer tires used on most trailers. I suspect this means that the chances of a blowout are much reduced. The coupler seemed to be in good shape, and the minimal electrical system worked fine.
At the front of the trailer, there is a nose that extends several inches, and this serves as a chock for the front wheel.
You’ll need to supply your own tie-downs. Most would probably use ratchet straps. But I’m an Eagle Scout, and Scouts use rope to tie things down. A few trucker’s hitches made sure the bike was rock solid. Whenever I’m hauling anything, I stop after about a mile and make sure that the load is secure. I did so before getting on the freeway on-ramp, and everything was solid.
To tow the trailer, you’ll need a 2 inch hitch ball, and a flat four electrical connection. If you’re lamenting the fact that you don’t have a vehicle with a trailer hitch, a hitch can be installed on virtually any vehicle, including most passenger cars. For more information, see our trailer hitch page. Of course, if you don’t have a car with a hitch, you can rent a truck that has one.
When I reserved the trailer online, I had to select the location I wanted it from. The closest to my house, strangely enough, was a liquor store, which apparently rents U-Hauls as a side hustle. Sure enough, when I drive past there, I notice there are always two or three trucks in their parking lot. I suspected that they might not just happen to have a motorcycle trailer the day we needed it. And sure enough, I got a phone call a few hours later directing me to another location, the large U-Haul dealer in the area.
I picked it up there on a Saturday morning. The clerk texted me a link, and I used my phone to upload a picture of my driver’s license. I neglected to call my insurance agent to see if I needed insurance, so to be on the safe side, I opted to pay an extra $8 for the collision damage waiver. But still, the total charge was under $25.
The technician outside quickly hooked up the trailer, and I was on my way. The return was equally quick, and I never had to mess with the connection myself. The trailer towed just fine, and made the trip quite easy. I had a little bit of brush at home that needed to go to the compost site, so I used the trailer for that before returning it.
The motorcycle trailers are available only for local rentals: You can’t rent it at one location and return it at another. If you need a one-way rental, then you need to get their larger 5×9 open-ramp trailer. The motorcycle trailer has a solid floor, so it would also be suitable for small ATV’s, lawn equipment, or just about anything that would fit on the 7’8″ by 3’9.5″ deck.
If you need to haul a motorcycle locally, then the U-Haul trailer is an inexpensive and convenient solution to the problem
Some links on this website are affiliate links, meaning that this site earns a small commission if you make a purchase after clicking the link.
Bottom Line: The AccuMed BNX N95 mask is a high quality protective mask, meets USA N95 standards, and is made in the USA. Even if this pandemic is over, it’s worth keeping some on hand for the next public health emergency. Update 12/26/21: When this review was written, Amazon carried the 10 pack shown above. At this time, only the 50 pack is available in white. The other masks reviewed on this page are available in smaller quantities. Update 12/29/21: The 10 pack is available again in black at this link.
I like to believe that I’m reasonably well prepared for emergencies, and the COVID-19 pandemic generally proved that I was prepared. We never ran out of toilet paper, although early on, we did have to be careful with our limited supply, and at one point we were rationing coffee. Curiously enough, the first thing we ran out of was lightbulbs, although we could have gotten by quite a bit longer by scrounging them from other rooms in the house. Even when riots hit the area, we were fully stocked with all the necessities of life, other than having to use powdered milk for a few days.
In a few cases, we had to make substitutions. We didn’t have very much hand sanitizer, but we solved that problem by washing our hands. And even though sanitizing wipes were unavailable, bleach was readily available and we were able to use it for sanitizing items.
But there was one shortage that made me angry at myself: In 2019, I could have walked into any hardware store to buy an N95 mask that was made in the USA. And unlike most people, I actually knew that an N95 mask would be a useful thing to have around in a public health emergency. But at the start of the pandemic, they were totally unavailable. And early on in the pandemic, we were told that it was practically unpatriotic to wear a mask, especially an N95 mask, because the limited supply was earmarked for healthcare workers.
A few weeks later, the official advice flip flopped, and we were told that it was unpatriotic not to wear a mask. But the N95 masks (in other words, the ones that were actually effective in preventing the spread of disease) were still off limits, since they were still reserved for healthcare workers.
During those early days of the pandemic, I rarely wore a mask, because I was rarely in a situation where I needed one. I didn’t go into other buildings, period. And I believed (and still do believe) that the risk outdoors was extremely small. I did all of my shopping with curbside pickup or home delivery. So I didn’t need a mask, because I wasn’t going into stores or other buildings.
The Need for a Good Mask
But eventually, there were unavoidable situations where I did need to go into buildings. So after about three months, despite the official guidance to the contrary, I decided it was time for me to be selfish and buy an N95 mask. Unfortunately, there were none to be had. The best I could find at that time was a KN95 mask, and even those were hard to find.
“N95” means that a mask meets the U.S. Government’s NIOSH standards. “KN95” means that the mask meets the standards of the Communist Chinese Government, and almost all of those masks were made in Communist China. The irony wasn’t lost on me: I was buying a Chinese Communist mask to protect myself against the Chinese Communist virus. I wasn’t happy about it, but I only had myself to blame. After all, in 2019, I could have walked into the hardware store and bought an American-made mask with the U.S. seal of approval. I didn’t do so, and I was stuck having to rely on the Communist Chinese Seal of Approval.
The mask I bought was the one shown at the left, and it served me very well. It was made in China, but it was imported by a reputable American company, AccuMed. At the time, there were a lot of dubious products on the market. I researched AccuMed and found that they were a medical supply company with an excellent reputation. Frankly, their name on the product meant more to me than the certification from some Chinese lab. The company was also in the process of gearing up to produce masks in the USA. (The same mask, made in the USA, is now available. Even though it is now made in the USA, it has the KN95 designation, probably because it uses ear loops instead of bands that go behind the head.) Those masks served me very well for a couple of months. On the occasions when I had to be inside the same building as other people, I was protected.
True to its promise, a few months later, AccuMed came out with a mask that was made in the USA, and I previously reviewed that mask, the duckbill-style A96 mask, similar to the one shown at left. This mask was made in the USA, but it was sold as meeting the Chinese KN95 standard, because the American N95 certification was still pending. It’s odd to have an American product that’s advertised as meeting the Chinese standard. But the virus doesn’t care about the paperwork. It was made in the USA by a reputable company, it seemed to form a tight seal, and I have no doubt that it provided protection. And after I purchased it, the mask was approved, and now has the U.S. N95 seal of approval.
Edited to add (11/16/21): The AccuMed A96 no longer appears to be available on Amazon, but this Kimberly Clark N95 mask, shown at left, appears to be identical.
This mask, like most N95 masks, was a bit more difficult to put on than the KN95 mask, because the elastic goes around the back of the head, and not just over the ears. But even though it’s slightly harder to put on, it’s much more comfortable to wear, since it’s not constantly pulling on your ears. If I had to wear a mask all day, this would be a huge advantage.
Like most other N95 masks, the straps go around the head, which makes it slightly more difficult to put on. But the advantage is that it’s much more comfortable once you have it on. It seems to form a good seal. If I had to work for hours with this mask on, it would cause very little if any discomfort.
Both of the AccuMed N95 masks, the white one and the blue duckbill style one, are comfortable to wear, and both make a good seal. For me, the white one is a little easier to put on, although the blue one seems to be easier to ensure a good seal once it’s on my face. Either one, though, takes only seconds to put on. One thing to keep in mind, though, is that the blue one seems to fit better on a smaller head. My daughter had a hard time getting a good seal with the white mask, but it was much easier with the blue mask. So if you are buying for a family, I would recommend getting both.
On the other hand, I now rarely have to wear a mask for more than a few minutes. Therefore, I will probably continue to use the AccuMed KN95 mask in those situations. It seems to have a good seal, and if I’m just going into the store for a few minutes, it’s somewhat more convenient to put on.
Especially at the beginning of the pandemic, and probably still now, there were a lot of fake masks hitting the market, and it’s important to buy from a reputable source. Fortunately, AccuMed/BNX is a real company, selling a real product, from a real bricks and mortar location in Houston, Texas, shown here. You can probably find something cheaper at the dollar store, but it’s more important to buy something that will really protect you, rather than trying to save a few pennies.
Ongoing need for a mask
From my personal point of view, the pandemic ended on March 15, 2021. On that date, the immunity from my second dose of the Moderna vaccine officially kicked in. There’s still a possibility that I’ll be infected, but the risk of serious illness or death are practically nil. The day after my immunity kicked in, I went from never going inside buildings unless absolutely necessary, to taking teaching jobs which put me in close contact with hundreds of kids. (I secured an early dose of the vaccine as a teacher, and I felt it was my duty to resume teaching at the earliest possible moment.) In my opinion, the need for a mask is now mostly gone. Chances are, I will rarely wear the new N95 mask. Because it was required this school year, I wore a mostly symbolic cloth mask while teaching. With my vaccination, I didn’t feel the need to wear the N95 mask all day. But if I had to work close to other people and was not yet vaccinated, I would certainly wear one of the N95 masks.
Even though I don’t believe it’s is necessary because of the vaccine, I have noticed that I didn’t get any colds or flu during the pandemic lockdown, because I wasn’t in a position to be infected. On my first few trips back to Walmart after a long absence, I realized something: There was a certain amount of truth to all of those “People of Walmart” memes. Many of my fellow shoppers don’t look particularly healthy. They might not be infections with COVID-19, but it’s likely that they’re infectious with something. Wearing a mask for my own protection probably isn’t a bad idea, and since I have some of them, I’ll probably slip on the KN95 mask before going in there or similar environments.
Even though all of my masks are disposable, there’s no reason why they can’t be used many times. I store mine in a paper bag labeled with the date. I have links to official guidance on reuse of masks at my earlier review. So when you order your masks, don’t forget to order a supply of brown paper bags.
At this point, I no longer have an immediate need for an N95 mask. From my point of view, the pandemic is over, because I am vaccinated. However, I didn’t need an N95 mask in 2019, and I’m still kicking myself for not going to the hardware store and buying one then. It would have made the early months of the pandemic less stressful knowing that I had this supply if needed.
And the next pandemic might be worse, and during that pandemic, I might need to come into contact with other persons. Even though it proved deadly to many, coronavirus was not as lethal as many anticipated. But the next plague might be worse. Having an N95 mask on hand for such an emergency is a low-cost way to make sure I’m prepared. I hope I never have to use them, just like I hope I never have to use my potassium iodide. But I feel a lot better knowing I have them.
During this pandemic, I never ran out of toilet paper. And in the next pandemic, I won’t run out of N95 masks, because I bought some when they were still available. I’m not making the same mistake I made in 2019.
I recommend all three of these masks. The duckbill style mask in the middle seems to be slightly easier to get a good seal, although it’s slightly more difficult to put on in the first place. If necessary, it would be comfortable enough to wear all day. Of the three, it probably is the best choice for children.
The white mask on the left is slightly easier to put on, and would also be a good mask if needed for all day use.
The white mask on the right seems to be very good quality, although it does not have the U.S. N95 approval. It is made in the USA, but has the Chinese KN95 approval. The reason is probably the fact that it uses ear loops rather than head bands. It is the easiest to put on, but the ear bands would be uncomfortable for all day use. It’s the easiest to use if you have to go into a store for a few minutes.
Since they all have slightly different uses, I’m glad I have a supply of all three for the next pandemic.
The product was supplied at no charge by the manufacturer in exchange for an honest review. Some links on this page are affiliate links, meaning that this site earns a small commission if you make a purchase after clicking on the link.
Bottom Line: The Opinel is a very inexpensive and unpretentious high quality knife for your everyday carry needs.
Pre-pandemic, I very rarely carried a pocket knife. When I needed a cutting tool, I looked around the garage or kitchen and found something suitable. In the car, I would find a cheap utility knife in the toolbox which would usually serve the purpose.
But with the pandemic, it seemed that I needed a knife multiple times per day. More often than not, it was to open a box from Amazon or Walmart. I like to do this outside, so that I can immediately discard the outer packaging into the recycling bin. Thus, it became convenient to keep a knife in my pocket. I had several around the house, many of which had been given to me as gifts over the years. The first one I stumbled upon was the Opinel No. 6 Stainless Steel folding knife.
As you can see from the picture, the Opinel is a nondescript knife with a wooden handle. It looks like a tool, which, of course, is exactly what it is. It doesn’t have a camouflage handle. It doesn’t have a built-in screwdriver or can opener. It’s benign looking, and designed for cutting things, a goal which it accomplishes remarkably well. It’s well made, and it seems to keep a cutting edge well. I’ve sharpened it a couple of times with a whetstone, and the edge seems to last.
My version came in stainless steel, and the knife is also available in carbon steel. Apparently, the carbon steel blade holds an edge a bit better, but is more prone to rust. The stainless steel (marked on the blade in French, Inox, short for inoxidable) seems the more practical choice.
The Number 6 in the product name indicates the length of the blade, the number 6 being 2.87 inches. The sizes range from a tiny Number 2, up to a Number 12 with a 4.84 inch blade. The number 6 seems to be the perfect size for the occasional jobs I use it for. In addition to opening boxes, I’ve used it to cut food while camping, strip wire, cut cords, and do the normal variety of tasks for which one would use a pocket knife. It’s big enough to do the jobs I need it for, but as it weighs only about an ounce, I hardly notice it in my pocket. The blade meets the “under three inches” standard which is important for some regulatory purposes. (On the other hand, at such time as it becomes safe to fly commercially, I’ll have to remember to leave it at home or in my checked baggage.)
The knife has a simple locking mechanism, which allows the blade to be locked open or closed. It’s simplicity itself–namely, a notched ring which can be twisted to hold the blade in place. In my opinion, most locking mechanisms are annoying and dangerous. If you’re using a knife in such a way that the blade might inadvertently close, then in my opinion, you are using it wrong. And most locking mechanisms I’ve seen require some contortion to disable them, such as holding down a button while moving the blade toward your finger. In most cases, in my opinion, the “safety” feature of a locking blade makes the knife less safe. In the case of the Opinel, however, the locking mechanism needn’t be used at all. In fact, I carried the knife around for quite some time before even realizing that the blade could be locked.
On the rare occasions when I might want to lock the blade on the Opinel, the mechanism and easy and safe to use. You merely rotate the ring to lock or unlock the blade.
Joseph Opinel began making knives in 1890 in Savoie, France, and the knife has always been the quintessential working man’s knife. Picasso reportedly used one as a sculpting tool. Today, about 15 million knives per year roll off the company’s assembly lines.
The Opinel knife is quite inexpensive, but high quality and useful. It’s unpretentious and looks like a tool, so it won’t draw the ire of those who are squeamish about knives. It’s the perfect knife to keep in your pocket. You’ll find you wind up using it several times per day.
Some links are affiliate links, meaning this site receives a small commission if you make a purchase after clicking on the link.
Update: When this review was published, the N95 approval was still pending. It has now been approved, and qualifies as a NIOSH N95 respirator. Becuase the mask is now approved, it has a new listing at Amazon. To order, use this link rather than the links below. I also have reviews of other Made in USA N95 masks at this link.
Bottom Line: The the AccuMed BNX Model A96 Respirator appears to be an effective measure to protect yourself from coronavirus. While N95 masks remain unavailable to the general public, this mask appears to be one of the best available alternatives.
“Masks Don’t Work”
As my anti-mask friends often point out, masks don’t work, and most people wear masks incorrectly. Those statements might very well be correct. Where I differ with my anti-mask friends, however, is what to do about that information. Their conclusion is that since masks don’t work, and since most people don’t wear them correctly; therefore, one shouldn’t bother wearing a mask.
It seems to me that this isn’t a very logical conclusion. If most people wear masks that don’t work, and most people wear masks incorrectly, then it seems to me that the logical conclusion is that I should wear a mask that does work, and I should wear it correctly.
The prevailing wisdom is that I should point out to my anti-mask friends that a cloth mask isn’t designed to protect the person wearing it–it’s designed to protect other people. But I won’t waste my time doing that–I am essentially a selfish person, and I want something that protects me. That it also protects those around me is a pleasant side effect, but it’s not my primary motivation.
My anti-mask friends often offer the criticism that I am blindly following orders. That’s surprising, since almost all of them wear a mask more than I do. I very rarely wear a mask. My average time per day of wearing a mask is probably about five minutes. Very few of even the most avid anti-maskers can make that claim.
This is because I prefer to simply avoid situations where I might have to breathe the same air as other people. For example, I have never been inside a Walmart wearing a mask. I’ve never been inside a bar wearing a mask. I’ve never been inside a church wearing a mask. I’ve never been inside a school wearing a mask. Most anti-maskers can’t say these things, because they’ve been inside one of these places, and they were wearing a mask at the time. I’ve avoided all of these problems, because I haven’t gone inside these places in the first place. My anti-mask friends often point out the fact that Walmart has the official government seal of approval of being a safe place. Well, they might believe the government’s pronouncement, but I don’t. I generally stay outdoors, where there are billions of cubic feet of air, and it’s unlikely that anyone else has breathed the same air as me.
The Occasional Need for a Mask that Does Work
Even though I try to stay outside, there are increasingly common situations where I need to go inside and breathe the same air as other people. On one occasion, I had to go inside the bank, and there was no way to do this particular transaction online. I’ve had to go inside the post office lobby to get my mail from my P.O Box. And occasionally, I’ve had to use the restroom (although when possible, I prefer the vault toilet.) So on these occasions, I need to wear a mask, because the government tells me that I need to wear a mask. And since I need to wear one anyway, I may as well wear one that works, and I may as well use it correctly.
Changing Advice from Government
We can debate all day whether the government should tell me what to do. But since I need to wear a mask anyway, again, I may as well wear one that works. If you remember back a few short months, the government hasn’t always told me to wear a mask. In fact, the initial advice from the government was specifically that I should not wear a mask.
For example, this March 2 Washington Post story quotes the Surgeon General’s recitation of the then-conventional wisdom: “One of the things they shouldn’t be doing, the general public, is going out and buying masks. It actually does not help, and it has not been proven to be effective in preventing the spread of coronavirus amongst the general public.” It also quotes a February 29 Tweet from the Surgeon General: “Seriously people- STOP BUYING MASKS! They are NOT effective in preventing general public from catching #Coronavirus, but if healthcare providers can’t get them to care for sick patients, it puts them and our communities at risk!”
(The editors of the Washington Post have since added an editor’s note saying that the official advice has changed.)
The Surgeon General actually had a point back in February. There was a severe shortage of effective masks, and it was best to reserve the remaining stock for health care workers, who really needed them. So I dutifully followed the official government guidance and refrained from trying to buy a mask. It was the right thing to do. In the meantime, I simply stayed away from other people, let the health care workers get the masks they needed, and gave American industry time to ramp up production.
On the other hand, I can’t stay away from other people forever. In July, I decided that I had given American industry sufficient time to start making masks in sufficient volume, and the time had come to buy myself an effective mask, namely an N95 respirator.
According to the FDA website, an N95 respirator is “a respiratory protective device designed to achieve a very close facial fit and very efficient filtration of airborne particles. Note that the edges of the respirator are designed to form a seal around the nose and mouth.”
The official government advice from that same website is still that I shouldn’t get one, because they are still in short supply:
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) does not recommend that the general public wear N95 respirators to protect themselves from respiratory diseases, including coronavirus (COVID-19). Those are critical supplies that must continue to be reserved for health care workers and other medical first responders, as recommended by current CDC guidance.
I’ve given American industry plenty of time to produce respirators. While I am sympathetic to the plight of healthcare workers, I’m also selfish. In July, I decided to ignore this official government advice. (Ironically, it’s the anti-maskers who are obeying this government edict.) I decided that it’s been long enough, and I should buy myself a mask for my own selfish purpose: Reducing the possibility of infection if I need to use a public restroom or go inside a building for some other reason. So my anti-mask friends will be glad to know that I’ve decided to selfishly ignore government recommendations.
A year ago, I could have walked into my friendly neighborhood hardware store and, for a couple of dollars, bought a genuine NIOSH-approved N95 respirator, proudly made in the USA. And as someone who likes to be prepared for emergencies, I should have done exactly that. But I didn’t. And in 2020, you can’t buy them, because there aren’t enough, and the entire national supply is earmarked for healthcare workers.
There aren’t even enough for healthcare workers. For that reason, the FDA has relaxed its standards, and has issued an emergency use authorization for American healthcare workers to use imported respirators meeting other countries’ standards. This includes, ironically enough, Chinese-made respirators meeting the Chinese KN95 standard, which is similar to the American N95 standard.
I’d prefer not to have to use a Chinese-made mask meeting the standards of the communist Chinese government to protect myself from a virus that originated in communist China. So I’m still kicking myself for not going to the neighborhood hardware store in 2019 and buying a supply of American-made masks. But beggars can’t be choosers, and as of July, the best that I could do was get a Chinese mask. There were KN95 masks available in July, and I bought one similar to this one from a reputable medical supply company in Texas. Even though it was made in China, it was better than nothing, and it met the FDA requirements for healthcare workers. So I decided it was adequate for my rare ventures into public buildings. The one that I purchased was marked that it met the KN95 certification, and the seller had available the lab report showing that it had the better-than-nothing Chinese certification. The one that I purchased did (at least for me) have a good fit. (The CDC website contains instructions for putting on a mask and ensuring a proper fit.) The mask must be tight against the skin all around so that all of the air passes through the mask, and not around the gaps. While this mask fits me, it doesn’t fit my kids very well, and it’s difficult to ensure a proper fit on them.
Re-using Disposable Masks
These masks are disposable, which makes perfect sense if you can walk into the neighborhood hardware store and buy a replacement. But since there’s a shortage, the FDA has addressed the crisis by allowing re-use. For example, these instructions from the North Dakota Department of Health show the approved procedure for re-use. Basically, you remove the mask carefully and store it in a paper bag until the next use. This video from the University of Nebraska is a good overview of the procedure:
I use a similar procedure with my masks, which are normally worn for less than five minutes at a time. I store it in a brown paper bag until it’s time to re-use it.
Even though the Chinese-made KN95 masks seem to be effective, and they are certainly better than nothing, I am somewhat dubious having a Chinese mask protect me from a Chinese virus. Fortunately, there is now an alternative, namely the BNX Model A96. They are available at Amazon from this link, although I bought mine directly from the manufacturer, AccuMed of Houston, Texas. They are made in the USA, and they originate from the brick and mortar location shown here.
“A96” is simply the product’s model number. They are, however, certified KN95 masks, meaning that this American product has the Chinese communist seal of approval. If that’s all I knew, I might not be particularly impressed. But more importantly, the manufacturer has applied for N95 certification, and that NIOSH application is pending. All of the documents in support of certification are linked on the AccuMed website. I would feel even more comfortable if the N95 certification were already granted. But again, what I should have done in 2019 was gone to the hardware store and bought a NIOSH-approved mask. I didn’t, so now I have to make the best of the situation. This mask has met the KN95 requirements, which makes it at least as good as the previous mask I purchased. And it’s made in the USA, which in my opinion makes it better. And it seems likely to me that it will meet the N95 requirements. At such time as it is certified, I suspect it might become unavailable for purchase. So it seemed to me that now was the time to buy.
I tried this mask on at home, and I made one trip to the post office with it. My initial reaction is that it is a good product.
It is smaller than my previous Chinese mask. As far as I know, all N95 masks have straps that go over the head, so that one is worn at the crown of the head, and the other one at the neck. Most of the KN95 masks have ear loops. In my opinion, the head bands make the mask much more comfortable, since it’s not constantly pulling on the ears.
This mask is smaller than my previous Chinese mask. That does make it somewhat more difficult to put on and take off. However, the straps, even though a bit tight, were still comfortable. More importantly, they ensured a tight seal against my skin. Once I had the mask on, it took very little adjustment to make a tight seal. The Chinese mask, even though it did make a seal, required more adjustment to get it just right. (With both masks, it is quite obvious that there is a seal, since I can see the material bellow in and out with each breath.) I did a self-test, and there were no leaks around the edges.
The smaller size also means that it’s a better fit for children. Both of my kids (14 and 16 years old) were not able to get a good seal with the Chinese mask. With this mask, the seal is much better, and when they breathe, the mask fabric visibly bellows in and out.
Just as soon as it becomes possible, I plan to walk in to the friendly neighborhood hardware store and buy myself an N95 mask that rolled of the assembly lines of the 3M corporation. You can even view them on Amazon today, where you are told that civilians aren’t allowed to buy them, even if they had any. But I suspect it will be a long time before I’m able to buy one. I’m reminded of the line from Alas Babylon where one character opines that he’ll probably never be able to buy gasoline in his lifetime.
Eventually, they’ll be back in stock at the hardware store, and at that time, I plan on stocking up. But in the meantime, the AccuMed BNX Model A96 appears to be the best choice.
Note: Some links on this page are affiliate links, meaning that this site receives a small commission if you place an order after clicking on the link.
During the pandemic, my family is minimizing as much as possible direct contact with others. We’re staying home, going out only when necessary, and staying away from other people when we do go out. To purchase groceries and other items, we’re ordering online. Earlier this week, I reviewed our experiences with Walmart pickup.
Today, we picked up an order from a local supermarket chain, Cub Foods. We had to chose a pickup slot about five days out. We placed a small order initially, and kept adding to it during the week. For our Walmart order, we had to make any final changes about 12 hours before the pickup time. With Cub, we were able to make changes up until the last minute.
When our order was being shopped, we received a text alerting us. We were able to log in to the app (or to the website, which I used) and chat directly with the person doing the shopping. When a product was out of stock, we were given a suggestion for a replacement product which we could either accept or decline. In a couple of cases, she texted us and asked for our choice.
A few items (rice, hand sanitizer, and toilet paper) were completely out of stock, and we were informed. We were informed when she was finished, and at the store, we alerted them that we were there using the app. The employee loaded the groceries into our car, with no personal contact needed. Unlike at Walmart, we didn’t need to sign in, and it was possible to stay back several feet.
One big advantage of Cub was that the whole pickup took place without any close contact with the employee. We opened the door, and he loaded the groceries. At Walmart, there was the additional step of having to sign for the order on a small tablet computer, meaning that there was some chance of contamination. Update: As of March 25, Walmart is no longer requiring you to sign for the order. At Cub, you identify your car on the app (including the license number), so there is no need to sign personally. The employee simply comes out to the right car and delivers your groceries.
Walmart had two advantages over Cub. First of all, it was possible to get a slot slightly sooner. It appears that slots open up at midnight (local time, I’m guessing) and you can make reservations for the next day. It appears that with Cub, you need to make the reservation about five days out. Also, with Walmart, it appears that you can purchase any item in the store. So if you need items such as hardware, electronics, or even clothing, Walmart would be the best option. Since Cub is a grocery store, you’re limited to mostly groceries. (However, like any major supermarket, Cub always has a small selection of non-grocery items.) Also, Walmart has somewhat lower prices overall.
Despite those advantages of Walmart, we preferred Cub. Being able to communicate with the shopper with respect to substitutions was a very nice touch. If you think of an item at the last minute, you can add it in.
At Walmart, most of the substitutions were very reasonable, and we did have the opportunity to reject them. But there was no mechanism to ask for a different replacement. With Cub, that was possible. At Walmart, you reject any substitutions when you’re picking up your order, with no opportunity to get a different replacement.
To chat with the shopper while your order is being filled, you of course have to be available online at the right time. When life gets back to normal, perhaps that will be difficult. For the time being, though, that’s not a problem.
Of course, unlike at Walmart, nobody crashed into our car when we were picking up items at Cub. But that’s hardly the store’s fault. We’ll probably use Walmart again if we’re in more of a hurry or need non-grocery items. Their service was very good. But for most of our grocery needs during this crisis, we’ll probably rely on Cub.
Some links on this page are affiliate links, meaning that this site gets a small commission if you make a purchase after clicking on the link. The links to Cub, however, are not affiliate links, and we are not compensated if you use them..
During the pandemic, my family wants to keep to an absolute minimum our direct interaction with others. If they’re infected, I don’t want to catch it. And just as important, if I’m infected, I don’t want to spread it to them. To minimize the amount of shopping we need to do, I’ve decided to alternate between online orders at local stores, and Amazon orders. I think we have enough supplies for the duration, but it’s nice to maintain our normal diet, including things such as fresh milk and bread.
Today, I picked up our first Walmart order, which was more or less a normal weekly grocery order, including milk bread, soft drinks, and canned goods. We happened to need some superglue, so we added it to the order, showing that you can order anything in the store.
I placed the original order online on Friday afternoon, and picked it up today (Monday). This was the earliest slot available, so the process does require some planning. As of today, no slots were available, and the website asked me to check later. So perhaps this is our one and only order. At the very least, the process does require some planning. However, once you reserve the slot and place the order, you are able to add and remove items from the order, up to about 12 hours before the pickup time.
Update:The Walmart site seems to have changed since I posted this. You can now make reservations only for “today” and “tomorrow.” The best bet seems to be to check the site right after midnight. For example, if you check at midnight Monday night/Tuesday morning, you’ll be able to reserve a slot for Wednesday.
Today, I received an e-mail telling me that my order was ready. The e-mail instructed me to check in on their app to let them know I was on the way, so I installed the app on my tablet. It turns out, however, that this is unnecessary. You can simply proceed to the store, park in the designated area, and then call from your car to the number posted there.
A couple of minutes after calling, the Walmart associate came out with our order and loaded it into the car. It was a well organized process. Our bags were in tubs labeled with my name. I noticed that some were marked “cold,” and some “ambient.” I apologized for not helping her load it, but I explained that I didn’t want to risk contaminating her. I did have to sign on a small tablet computer. Update: As of March 25, you no longer need to sign for the order. I was able to stand back 6+ feet the entire time. I got out my hand sanitizer, and sanitized my hands immediately after doing so.
When placing the order, I was able to select whether I would be willing to accept a substitution for items. Some items were out of stock, and I received a substitute item. In most cases, the substitute was a slightly different brand, size, or flavor. For example, they were out of the two-pound package of white cheddar cheese, so I received two one-pound packages of sharp cheddar, for one cent less than my original order.
The only case where the substitute wasn’t useful was our order of a spray can of Lysol (which we were ordering for a neighbor). In the case, they gave us Febreeze, which really wasn’t useful. However, the choices were e-mailed to us, and we had the option of removing the item. I told the associate that if it was difficult, not to bother, but she quickly found the item, scanned it in, and we were credited for the amount.
We ordered a package of toilet paper and were hopeful that we would get it, but it was out of stock and no substitution was available. We also ordered a container of Ensure for an elderly friend, but it was also unavailable.
Overall, the process worked very well. If it remains available during the current national emergency, we’ll definitely make use of it again.
The only glitch was, upon leaving, another customer backed into my car. Despite what sounded like a loud crunching sound, it left only a small dent in the rear door. I’m sure if I took it to a body shop and let them know the other driver’s insurance would pick up the tab, they would gladly replace the door for hundreds of dollars. On the other hand, it’s a twelve year old car, and I doubt if I’ll pursue the matter.
In the car, I had a pencil and sheet of paper, so I tore it in half, wrote my information on one half, and then had the other driver do the same. When she was finished, I had her keep the pencil. She was apologetic, and in better times, I would have shaken hands before we left. In the time of pandemic, we just went our ways.
Some links on this page are affiliate links, meaning that this site gets a small commission if you make a purchase after clicking on the link.
Bottom Line: Better than Nothing, The Price is Right, and Free Roadside Assistance.
Possibly the best value, though, is an automatic membership in a roadside assistance plan, named, like the product itself, Justincase. It purports to be a AAA-style assistance plan. After sending in the card that came with the kit, you can call a toll-free number, and they’ll come out and provide roadside assistance at no cost. A card is included, which you are directed to send in care of Vehicle Administrative Services of Dallas, TX. If you want to read the fine print of the details of the plan, click the image at left for a full-size image.
My friend Volodymyr “Wlad” Gurtovy, 
about his experiences living in Kyiv, Ukraine, in the middle of a war. Wlad, like me, is an attorney, and lived a middle-class existence similar to mine, until Russia invaded eastern Ukraine in 2014. He and his family then relocated to Kyiv, but with Russia’s 2022 invasion, he was once again in the middle of the war. His wife and teen son and daughter evacuated to Poland, where they were able to find an apartment, thanks in part to the generosity of friends in America and elsewhere.
One item that was lacking from the original kit was meat, or any type of protein for that matter. I corrected that after Christmas by buying a Hickory Farms 
Incidentally, if the package looks familiar, that’s because this type of packaging is also used for 
If students are looking for an interesting science fair project, I hope my little experiment has given you some ideas. Even if you don’t have a driver’s license, you can recruit your parents to keep track of mileage when driving, and compare different fuels, or different types of driving, to see which is the most economical.
But now, virtually all gasoline sold in the U.S. contains at least 10% ethanol, and virtually every car on the road has been burning 10% ethanol for years. Water never gets a chance to build up in the tank. If there is dirt in the tank, it comes out constantly. Unlike the time the car got its first tank of ethanol, years’ accumulation of dirt is not coming out all at once to suddenly clog the filter. So after that initial shock, ethanol actually corrects the problem, and also prevents gas line freeze. In the days before ethanol fuel, in cold climates, people bought a product called 
My son owns an 
To tow the trailer, you’ll need a 
The mask I bought was 
True to its promise, a few months later, AccuMed came out with a mask that was made in the USA, and 
Fortunately, the time has now come when it’s once again possible to buy the thing that I should have bought in 2019: An N95 mask made in the USA, the 
Even though all of my masks are disposable, there’s no reason why they can’t be used many times. I store mine in a paper bag labeled with the date. I have links to official guidance on reuse of masks 
Just as soon as it becomes possible, I plan to walk in to the friendly neighborhood hardware store and buy myself an N95 mask that rolled of the assembly lines of the 3M corporation. 
order, which was more or less a normal weekly grocery order, including milk bread, soft drinks, and canned goods. We happened to need some superglue, so we added it to the order, showing that you can order anything in the store.
