As I was grilling, I looked at my feast and realized it wouldn’t be possible without a farmer.

The ground starts shaking. The vibrations jolt you into action. It’s an earthquake! Quick ­– what are you supposed to do? If you’re in certain parts of the nation, like the Midwest, your earthquake skills might be a little rusty. With February being Earthquake Awareness Month, this is the perfect time to get prepared.

We are in winter, right? For the last two weeks, when I stepped outside, it was 40+ degrees. Mother Nature was seemingly giving us a break from the early onset of winter. Today, we got a glimpse of the cold weather to come. Now’s the time to prepare your home for the inevitable icy onslaught.

Imagine yourself in New Madrid, Missouri. It’s Dec. 16, 1811. Without warning, you hear a tremendous noise. The ground shakes and fissures. The rumbling intensifies. Your house groans as if about to collapse. You run outside. Trees are falling, and birds are screeching. What’s happening?

In the time it takes you to read this post, there will be three home fires reported in the United States. What’s worse is on average seven people die in home fires every day!

Remember that blizzard more than just a week ago? You know, the one that provided many of us with snow days, school closings, and opportunities to build snowmen, make snow angels and wage snowball fights? Well, as the temperatures rose this week, suddenly our frosty creations disappeared. Patches of grass returned to entice us with hopes of spring time.