Driving around the Hudson Valley in the winter can sometimes leave you stranded. Not to long ago we all got caught off guard by a storm that went under predicted and left us all scrambling to make it home on icy roads all over the Hudson Valley. So what should you keep in the car for winter driving?

AAA has a great list of things that you should always have in your car winter or not. Their Winter Car Care Checklist includes lots of things you should do to keep your car in good working order to prepare for the winter cold. It also has a good check list of items that should be in your car if you get stuck. Things like water, non-perishable snacks, blankets, a shovel and extra gloves all make good sense but what about other things, things that would just help pass the time.

I got thinking about not a dangerous situation list but more like a I'm stuck here for a while until the roads clear kind of list. Things that would help you pass the time. Here what I came up with that everyone should stash in the car.

1 - Indulgent Snack - not just a snack but a good snack. Something that you love to have but it is considered a treat maybe because it's expensive or maybe because if you had it every day it wouldn't seem so special. For me that would be chocolate covered cherries. You can pick your favorite indulgent snack.

2 - Something to read. I must have 5 magazine I have saved to read and at least two or three books I started that I haven't finished. Pack them into the back seat so if you are stuck you can reach for that snack and your book and hunker down until the plows come through.

3 - All winter you should have a cooler in the trunk. Think of it as the portable Frig. I would regularly fill it with ice whenever the threat of bad weather is forecasted and then put in it water and any other tasty beverage you might need to quench your thirst waiting to be plowed out. Remember you might not be stuck in the actual car you may just be stranded at work and wish you had that Yeti packed for a long night.

4 - Comfy clothes. If you have spent all day in your work clothes and now you are bunking up in the car or your office you are probably gonna want to shed the office attire for something more zen and snuggly. I would leave the onesie pajamas at home but yoga pants and a big sweatshirt can be the perfect go to outfit when strand by the weather.

So make sure you have all your safety items in the car this winter and then think outside the box an load up a winter "go" bag that includes a few creature comforts.

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