In baseball part of the infielders job is to cover the base. In anticipation of catching

a ball and forcing a runner out, he stands with one foot on the plate.

That's covering the base. Now when we are not talking about baseball,

covering the base refers to anticipating what might happen around you,

and having some kind of plan of attack. The other day I sold a piece of furniture

on ebay. It was so big that it wouldn't fit inside my car, so I had to arrange for local pick up only.

Well the day arrived for the guy to come pick

up the furniture, and I realize I'm going to be at home alone. And I've exposed myself and

my house to a perfect stranger, I've never met, who is going to be arriving with a great

big truck, and a big burly guy to help him load up the furniture.

Hmmm. So to cover my bases, I text my husband at

work and I said: This is the buyers name, his address, his email, his phone number and

the time he's coming to pick up that piece of furniture. Call me back in an hour to make sure everything

went smoothly. Then I text two of my neighbor lady friends

and I said: Hey Ladies, I know you're going to be at home, I've got a perfect stranger

coming to my house to pick up a piece of furniture, can you kinda like just peek out your window

and make sure that's all that happens. Well truth be known, that's all that happened.

The transaction went very smoothly, the guy was a perfect gentleman, but the reason I

tell you this story is to ask this question: \"Do you have your bases covered?\"

According to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, there are almost 258,000

people that go missing every year. They are either abducted by family and friends,

or they just go missing. They run away, or drive off into an icy ditch and they're never found.

Are you covering your bases?

If you decide you're going to leave the gym and go for a solo run, have you stopped long

enough to text someone to let them know what route you're going and when you expect to be back?

Heaven forbid anything should happen to you,

but if something did, do we even know where to start looking for you?

That's covering your base. If you have to go on a business trip and you're

driving three states away and the roads are icy, do we know what time you are leaving,

what time you expect to arrive - again, if we have to come looking for you, do we know

where to start. Cover your bases, it lets everybody in your

circle of influence have peace of mind, it might keep you safe, and it's a good idea.

Now that's a good idea.