Survivor McGyver- Hotel Room

You are on a business trip. Airline lost your luggage and the shuttle dropped you off at the hotel. The city is under evacuation because the dam above is going to break. You are in a metro area and need to head to the hills on foot. This is a basic Motel 6 room. You have no idea of the city area you will pass thru, but you can see high ground hills about 20 miles away. You have no clue if help will be available once you get to the hills. Plan for the worst, hope for the best. You have an unknown situation.

 

Closet rod and thick wire hangers are coming with me, bedding, all the blankets, shower curtain, (both) soap bar, any water, and the ice bucket. All towels (cut some in strips as straps for a pack bundle) lamp cords will be used as cordage. Grab the hotel phone if light enough, you may need to make contact with someone later, and it can plug into any phone system you may find. If nothing else. The cords will be useful. Look for hotel matches if a smoking room. That new testament is a compact batch of tinder for fire starting, and God will not mind (god helps those who help themselves) if mobile, the bathroom mirror would be useful for signalling, or broken and reshaped, could start fire.

 

So you guys wouldn't grab the roll of TP in the picture?

Seriously, I'd take many of the things previously mentioned but not all. Note that if trying to cover 20 miles, presumably on foot, to escape a pending dam break, moving quickly is paramount, so one needs to travel light. If there happen to be evaluation services or someone offers a ride, you don't want to be loaded down. Use a pillow case or two doubled together as a rucksack. Strips of towel or bed spread for shoulder straps. Shower curtain for shelter. Just 1 blanket or comforter depending on temps, which ever would seem to absorb the least water and still insulate if wet. Just one or two towels. Ditto to raid the vending machine. Snap the metal cover off the HVAC unit with the controls; it time permits later, an edge could be rubbed on a concrete sidewalk to make a cutting edge but discard it if something better is encountered during the trek. Most of these rooms also have an air vent on the wall that could be used as a grill grate but probably not worth the time/weight. I'd skip the ice bucket and raid the hallway trash can or vending machine for some pop bottles. Wash then and fill with water as needed. Grab a couple of the plastic cups. Use the plastic bag from the ice bucket and/or trash can to keep the TP and Kleenex dry. Ditto grabbing power lines to use as cordage. Bar of soap or two. Hanger rod from closet or grab bar from shower for defense. Check the travel magazines, hotel guide or phone book typically in rooms for maps of area. I might try to not do too much damage to room because if the dam doesn't break, you'll be on the hook for the repairs and missing stuff.

AT

 

I never check luggage. NEV-AH. Not even when I travel for extended periods of time. I can fit everything I need for up to 2 weeks in my backpack. So there's pretty much no way the airline can lose my stuff.

So while you guys are ripping up shower curtains and pillowcases, my backpack wearing self is scampering to high ground.

I had friends with family in Houston who came up our way back during Rita. They said it took them 14 hours to get out of the city.

 

Actually, my rolling travel case, coverts to backpack with just the removal of a bit of Velcro, but our bags were lost. (That is a given requirement.)

 

I don't care if it WAS a given. The last one was an EMP but people were still setting their car on fire and waiting for someone else to drive by and give them a lift, so I'm flying the way I always do on this one. With my carryon and no luggage to lose. You show me a woman who doesn't carry at least a purse on a plane and I'll show you a dude in a dress with bad fashion sense.

 

Ya know, I could deal with the dam breaking,being a stranger in a strange land and all, but ya had to lose my luggage as well. So, taking that as sign of my destiny I'm raiding the hotel bar of all the Capt and coke there is and then using the power cord from the lamp in my room and the shower curtain rod to put an end to my drunk@ss because I can't swim fer shiite The end.

PS: Your travel agency sucks,last week I got left in the desert with a useless car and a dead cell phone..

 

Well, just few weeks ago, was on a trip to Boston and the fellow I was traveling with, who NEV-AH checks his bag either, as he was boarding had the flight crew claim all the overhead storage was full, the bag wouldn't fit under a seat and he had two choices, let them check it at the gate, or not fly. There was no choice to not check it. But, fundamentally I agree, I don't check bags either and use a soft sided shoulder bag and not one of those stiff things with little wheels as the soft side can be stuffed into about any storage space. I used to even travel this way years ago with a business suit (the trick is to know how to properly roll it so it isn't badly wrinkled and then steam it a bit in the bathroom and it looks great.)

AT

 

When I go into a hotel I first look for the fire exits. Then I count the number of steps to the exit in case of smoke I know aprox where the exit is.

 

we need to teach that guy how to travel... I never check either unless i have too... and if they insist on checking I tell them....

" I'm happy to do that will you please sign that you and the airline will be personally responsible for the $10k worth of equipment I am putting in your hands and out of my site?" *bats eyes*

They always find room

I do something similar if I get a hotel room that is too high off the ground =)

 

I have shipped ups before instead of checking baggage. But I travel light and will purchase items if I need them and ship them back home, hotels can be very accommodating if you need to ship something.

 

@ditch witch with her trusty pack was escaping the hotel. Stepping out of the hotel, she found herself stepping into a fleeing army of smelly minions pushing shopping carts. DW stood no chance against the shopping cart brigade. A terrible collision happened & stuff flew everywhere. DW scrambled to her feet and grabbed what she thought was her bag. The minions’ scurried away. DW looked into the bag she was holding and saw it contained a Barbie, 5 shining bottle caps, broken stapler, a chipped clay pot, and one rubber boot. Does @ditch witch go back to her room to get stuff for her trip to the hills or carry on with her newly acquired bag?

 

@motomon34 you are creative and tricky.... I like that in a person to =)

 

If the option applies, I would raid the down stairs breakfast bar... collect any knives and utensils/pots available... any easily transportable food (Cereals, bagged pastries, boiled eggs and oatmeal envelopes, etc)... and if possible open one of the beverage dispensers to remove the bagged juice... add salt and pepper napkins incase the SHTF is really bad... would roll items up in a bed roll so I could carry it easier than a back pack... grab some garbage bags and maybe a hand truck if available... check out the maintenance mans/janitor's closet for tools and other items of interest. grab one of the coolers and place it on the bottom of the cart fill it with ICE and grab a map out of the local attractions folders bin... then I would consider taking the cash (bit of a dilemma) and the register and blow the popsicle stand...

 

Toss hygiene items, shower curtain, two face clothes, one hand towel in a pillow case, grab rest of pillow cases and head vending area. Then the bar to wait for the taxi.

 

I'm grabbing the complimentary iron.

Makes a great zombie head knocker!

 

I forgot to take the wire off the pictures in the room...