Self Apocalypse: The Beginning (7 page)

By the end of the day I had pretty much cleaned out the cabin.  I piled all the old blankets together and burned them.  I didn’t find any mice or other rodents while cleaning, so I assumed they long ago evacuated their sanctuary.  Thankfully there had been a make shift broom inside in good enough shape to sweep.  All in all, the cabin wasn’t too bad.  The roof looked like it might need a little repair, but other than that everything else seemed good.  Even the stove inside was in good shape and usable.  At least it appeared to be anyway.  I guess I would have to give it a go to know for sure.

It wasn’t as modern as the camper, but the cabin was much roomier inside.  You could actually move around without needing to avoid hitting your legs or arms on anything.  It had a nice rustic feel to it also.  Almost felt like a home to me.  Other than the furniture and some dishes, there wasn’t anything really useful.  I was still a little weary about sleeping inside, but the cold from last night was a little too much to bear.  I started the woodstove to see if everything was fine.  Unbelievably it was, and it really warmed the cabin up too.  I’m sure the chimney would need to be cleaned somehow, but for now I would be able to get through the night.  I collected as much wood as I thought I would need for that night, and then turned to my gear for this evening’s dinner.

I didn’t dare to leave the stove burning while I slept, but it didn’t matter because it had heated the cabin to a very comfortable temperature.  I slept in the main part of the cabin on the floor as best I could.  I just couldn’t bear to sleep on the bunk in the bedroom, not even the top bunk.  I was thinking I might just tear the bunk bed right out, and try to build myself a new one.  Maybe I was getting a little too crazy about the whole deal.  I had time to think it over that was for sure.  I wasn’t planning on moving in so I guess it really didn’t matter anyway.

The next morning I began my return journey back to the camp.  I stopped only to pick some wild berries I found along the way.  I found no sign of any road or trail when I was at that cabin.  I assume who ever had been living there wanted the solitude or maybe any pathway had long ago been taken back by the forest.  I spent the rest of the summer bringing some emergency supplies to the cabin, and getting to know the area a little more.  I also repaired the roof as best I could with what I had.  It would definitely serve as a great retreat for an emergency, and had already served as a great place to kind of ‘get away’ from the camp.  I also noticed that the shadow of loneliness that had been following me disappeared, and I was truly starting to think that the all of this was starting to strengthen me not only physically but mentally as well.

Chapter Six

Things Are Looking Up?

“An horse is a vain thing

for safety: neither shall he

deliver any by his great strength.”

– Psalms 33:17

As summer finally faded away, it was replaced by the cool autumn mornings.  Fall was full of anxiety for the up coming winter, and was spent in last minute preparations.  This was going to be my first winter in the mountains, and I wasn’t planning on becoming a casualty like that poor soul up at the cabin.  I was able to get my hands on a snowmobile and installed a very small woodstove in the camper.  I had to lay in bricking and put in a stovepipe, but in the end it was worth it.  The stove came from someone in town who had originally used it in a canvas tent they owned.  They were very eager to get rid of it, or I should say to get my cash.  It didn’t matter much anymore though, as paper money just wasn’t worth anything anymore.  Most places didn’t even except it anymore.  One thing still spoke though, and that was the gold.

I still held closely to my stash though, and had yet to spend any of it.  I was able to go hunting before the coldest of winter settled in and had shot a deer.  I was sure to have plenty of meat for the winter without the need to spend monetary resources.  My refridgeration problem had been solved as well with the coming of winter.  That was a relief in itself.  Although, I wish I didn’t have to sacrifice the warm nights in order to keep my food preserved.

The loneliness still lingered around occasionally, but I was pretty use to it and it wasn’t as bad as when I first arrived.  Luckily I wasn’t buried in this winter either.  I was expecting a lot more snow than the foot and half that covered the ground so late in winter.  It was enough to slow you down walking around though.  If there wasn’t such a shortage in gas I probably would have enjoyed the sled more too.  Oh well, it was still cheaper than driving the truck.  You could also get to town a lot faster too.  It was actually a bit scary how fast that sled could move.

There had been lots of good news on the radio this winter.  Things really looked like they were beginning to shape up.  The government had opened the reserved food supplies and tasked the military with the duties of distribution.  These supplies were going to specific drop points where they were loaded to be dispersed amongst the region the depot covered.  I’m not sure where our regional outpost was, but it didn’t matter because apparently they didn’t know where I was either.  I had supplies though so I didn’t care.  I just hoped that the food was getting to those who truly needed it.

Conflict still ruled the world though, especially in the Middle East.  War on a large scale was inevitable now and fueling these conflicts was the need for oil.  Petroleum seemed to be the root of all evil these days.  I sometimes wondered if things would have been completely different, and all of this avoided if alternative energy had truly taken off.  I guess it wasn’t any use trying to find the cause anymore though.  The problem now rested on how to find a solution.  The banks were still holding in there, but according to the reports on the radio you couldn’t withdraw your money so easily.  It’s amazing how people were being patient with the financial system.  However, like I stated earlier, money really wasn’t worth anything and that is probably what prevented people from revolting to get their money.

It’s hard to say where things were going, but one thing was for certain, the government was stepping up to the plate and finally doing some much needed governing.  Besides the food distributions, the military was providing aid for law enforcement where necessary.  Not marshal law mind you, but enforcement of federal and local laws under the supervision of whatever law enforcement officials remained in the area of aide.

I tried to imagine all these insane things happening while I sat in my camper cut off from the rest of the world.  My present situation bore one mission and that was staying warm.  I only ran the propane heater now at night when I slept, and even then I kept it rather cool in the camper.  By the looks of the four tanks I had, it appeared I had enough propane to make it to early spring.  I just hoped I was right.  I had been using the top of that small woodstove to heat water and cook, so I didn’t waste fuel on the cooking stove.

Showers consisted of a pale full of hot water, and a cup I would use to poor it slowly over me to rinse.  One thing I noticed I was going to need soon were candles.  I wasn’t really watching my supply and had gone through more than expected during these long winter nights.  I added those to my list of things to pick up on my next sledding adventure into town.  Though my food supply was in good order I did miss having fresh vegetables from the garden.  The idea of having fresh green beans almost made my mouth water.

Probably the worst part about the whole ordeal was the coffee situation.  Coffee was becoming a scarce commodity and I was running dangerously low.  So I unfortunately found myself rationing my coffee, and in some instances banning the use of it on certain days.  It was most likely for the best though as my caffeine intake was higher than it should have been.  I practically drank coffee all day in the past.  I had to admit I did notice a considerable difference in my overall health when I cut back.  Still, the habit was a hard one to break and needed a replacement.  I found myself drinking hot water a lot, and occasionally making a tea from what tea bags I had and whatever I could find outside and steep.

Playing solitaire was getting old so I started playing against myself in cribbage with a makeshift board I made.  I also played a few hands of black jack and poker against myself too.  Most of my free time though was spent planning for spring.  I was going to start preparing for next winter the moment this winter ended.  I was starting to find myself daydreaming too about getting out of this mess.  I wondered how the cabin was fairing this winter, and looked forward to a visit this spring after the snow melted.  I had stocked the cabin pretty good, and even brought some gear up that I left for use up there.

As I returned to reality I realized I had no idea what day it was.  I hadn’t heard the date or day announced on the radio today, and didn’t even remember if I had in the last few days.  I added a calendar to my list of needed supplies.  That was one thing I just never even thought of picking up.  I had never needed one before, but living out here had certain affects like not needing to know which day it was.  So eventually you just stop keeping track altogether.  I suppose it really wasn’t important though.  It wasn’t like I had to be to work on Monday or anything like that.

“Yeah, cross calendar off list.”  I slowly crossed the calendar off my supply list.

That was another thing I started to notice during these long winter months.  I was beginning to talk out loud to myself or to no one at all!  I was beginning to question my sanity, but came to the conclusion that I was fine.  Of course, that was after having a debate with myself over the issue.  I have to admit, if a third party had joined in I might have considered myself to be insane.  I was doing very well overall though.  I was a little worried about actually surviving the winter, but so far I had stood strong and had been ready for the test.

I looked outside at the gray and overcastted afternoon.  Seeing the possibility of more snow flying this evening, I decided to put off a trip to town until the next afternoon.  If things were looking good tomorrow, I would definitely take a needed supply run to town.  I spent some time cleaning the camper a little.  I made sure I kept things stowed away and to not let any clutter or filth gain an inch.  To do so would inevitably have given a pathway for depression to come running in.  Just because I was alone and in the middle of the mountains didn’t mean I couldn’t keep things tidy and in proper order.  Who knows, maybe the military might find me and drop by.  I laughed at the mere thought of it or having company stop by at all.  It seemed like such a crazy thought having a guest over.

After laughing to myself, I gathered up my gear I was going to bring tomorrow and placed everything neatly together.  I had enough of cleaning for now.  It was time to listen to the radio and have a cup of hot water.  The thought of coffee came to mind, so I decided right there to have hot soup for dinner and to also try and acquire more coffee in town.  Hopefully the hot soup would help control the want for a good coffee.  I think the main problem was drinking tasteless hot water so it should work.

The next morning my coffee craze got of control.  I put a temporary end to the rationing and ended up having two cups of coffee before heading out to town.  I listened to the radio as I normally did while drinking my coffee.  Things still sounded rather hopeful.  Maybe this was going to be the turning point.  Hopefully now that the government was on the move and restoring security to the nation, we could start standing again and fix this whole problem.  I wasn’t crossing my fingers though.  The government might be riding in on its horse to save us, but I was having a hard time envisioning just how they were going to accomplish that.  I think the bottom line was that we were so far into the mud right now, that only we (that is
the people
) were going to be able to stabilize the country and the economy.  It was just going to take time and a lot of it too.

I took a good long glance out through the window.  The sky looked great outside, not a hint of foul weather loomed on the horizon.  I finished my second cup of coffee, and then proceeded to put on my snow gear.  I was beginning to become excited about heading out on the trail today.  I wondered how things were in town.  I hadn’t been out that way in quite some time.  Now that the winter would soon be coming to end, I thought it would be a good time to get away from camp.

* * * * *

Trees passed by steadily as I worked my way down the old logging road towards town.  I found that I had to take it easy with my speed due to my lack of proper gear.  I even had to stop occasionally to try and warm up a little.  I was lucky I even had a helmet to keep shield my head from the cold air passing by.  My jacket, gloves, and boots were adequate enough, but not having snow pants was a real damper.  I did find that wearing long underwear and two pairs of pants helped tremendously, but the fabric wasn’t made to play around in the snow.  More times than none my pants would eventually dampen, and after that they stayed wet.  Turned out that the snowmobile was the best thing I could have gotten my hands on.  None of the roads were plowed until you got to Main Street in town, and even then they were poorly maintained.  There just weren’t enough resources available to keep up with Mother Nature.  There were times when the people in town would actually clean the snow covered street with shovels.

It wasn’t long before I started passing a few houses, the first sign of civilization.  Smoke slowly rose from their chimney stacks, and vehicles rested in the driveways under heaps of snow.  I was now following tracks from other sleds, so I wasn’t the only one traveling around in this fashion.  The country back roads soon gave way to the side streets in town.  I continued to follow the tracks in the snow that were now more prominent as I approached the main drag.  Apparently people had given up on taking care of the snow, because I found Main Street covered in snow from at least the last two storms.  Most the shops were closed and locked in by the snow.  It was obvious that the majority of businesses in town had finally folded.  I was beginning to wonder if I would be able to get any supplies at all.  That started to worry me a little bit, and I could feel my stomach tighten up from the thought of it.