you're never ready
― Jacqueline Lapidus
Prepping for Armageddon
I never saw myself as a survivor, let alone a survivalist. I found the whole topic of disaster preparation to be the obsession of a few who believed you could prepare for anything. I sincerely doubted that way of thinking.
Mind you, my cabin was equipped to be self-sustaining and totally off the grid but that wasn't because of any fear of impending calamity―It was simply a pragmatic approach so I could work remotely and still be able to isolate and fully concentrate when a project demanded it.
I suppose, nevertheless, I had a streak of rugged individualism in me because one of my favourite YouTube channels was a site called My Self Reliance about a man surviving out in the wilderness,
I watched it regularly late at night simply because the slow pace relaxed me and I could sleep hopefully without being tormented by the foul basilisk.
Well, that was the plan, but I was unsuccessful most nights and came to the conclusion that sleep held torment and I had better get used to it.
Last night was the exception to that rule.
I had a deep dreamless sleep that was more the result of exhaustion and hopelessness.
I was deeply worried about Tom Faraday and tried to persuade him to retreat to the cabin with me and the girls, but he refused and I actually felt so overwhelmed I fell asleep on the floor and woke up in the morning shivering and convinced Tom was dead.
Now, I can't shake the overpowering feeling of dread but I'm determined to carry on regardless.
This is the last day before we head up north and I'm determined to make the best of it and load up my trailer with whatever resources I can scavenge while leaving room for Angelica and Brooke's things.
It will be an adventure, I tell myself, which is putting the best face on it. It could end up a disaster but with no other alternative, we have to make it work regardless of the odds against us.
I spend the morning and most of the afternoon methodically packing and loading equipment and necessities. I'm hoping my vegetable garden has survived untended along with the raspberry and blueberry bushes.
I have a couple of acres of woodland so we won't run out of firewood. There's a creek on the property and the water is drinkable.
In the afternoon, I make a grocery run to the local Walmart for canned and dry goods along with preserving jars and lids.
I also buy a box of k95 masks as protection against the plague that's sweeping across the city. I'm wearing an N95 mask I bought when I planned to paint my kitchen but never got past sanding and applying a primer coat on the cabinets.
I feel like Robinson Crusoe except my aim is to avoid human contact outside of my small circle and any necessary interactions with locals.
Even if we succeed in securing the necessary provisions for surviving the winter, there will still be the threat from the cabal actively seeking out all suspected resistance and anyone who stands in the way of their objectives.
I can't help thinking about Tom Faraday. If they’ve captured and interrogated him, they may be able to extract enough information to narrow the search for me.
It’s a terrifying prospect but thankfully, for the moment we’re free, yet how long that will last I have no idea.
We can elude physical searches but as Breton said, there’s no distance in the spirit and that’s what really concerns me