The Journal: Cracked Earth (8 page)

“Don’t ask. But since I have mine, we kind of
know each other. Besides, you know what a small town this is,” I
reminded her. “Let me know when the sheriff can be here and I’ll
have everybody ready.”

“Good luck, Allexa. You may well be on your
own, you know,” were her last words.

“Wait! What about food?” I asked. She had
already hung up.

* * *

I’m assuming that Anna is now the supervisor,
since she ran for election unopposed. I had THE disaster talk with
Dennis when he got elected, and Lenny before him, now it’s time for
the conversation with Anna. She isn’t the type to want to hear what
I have to say and I’m not looking forward to it. Hopefully with all
that’s gone on in the past week, she’ll be more receptive to some
hard truths.

At the top of the list of things to do was to
check with Joe at Fram’s Store. I stopped there before going to the
township office and left word that I needed to see him in Anna’s
office.

Joe arrived shortly after I did and we
discussed what was in the small grocery store. I reassured him that
we had no intention of confiscating his inventory, which seems to
be holding, mainly because he maintains a back room stock, not a
JIT system. He also had the gas tanks filled a week before all this
happened. He didn’t like it that I said that we might need to
ration the gas, however he saw the wisdom in it. There really is no
place to go, so we decided to limit gas to ten gallons
per-person-per-week, and that will mostly be used for generators if
the power goes out. I also suggested he that limit store hours, so
there won’t be panic buying like in the city. I then suggested that
he might also want to consider hiring a night watchman. That was a
shock to him, because this is a fairly crime-free community and
there hasn’t ever been the need for guards before. Half the people
in town don’t even lock their doors.

Along with the store is the only Laundromat
in town and a café that serves breakfast and lunch. The biggest
draw is that both areas are internet hot spots. One of the
downsides of being so rural is the dependency on only a few relay
towers, and those towers need power. When the power goes out, so
does the connection. Joe has a huge backup generator for the store
complex, and since he provides the electricity for the tower on top
of his building, the internet should still work. I say “should”
because it’s never been fully tested.

I like Joe. We’ve been friends a long time,
and I suggested that he take some of the food stock home with him,
a couple cases of veggies at the very least. He glumly nodded and
left.

Anna is a very petite gray/blond, with never
a hair out of place and is always nicely dressed. She looked
shocked and ruffled while she slumped in the oversized brown
leather chair and drummed her manicured fingertips on the glass
desktop.

“On our own? No help from anyone? What are we
going to do?” she asked after I relayed the information from Liz to
her. She was
so
not ready for this.

“The first thing we’re going to do, Anna, is
stay calm. The town will look to you for guidance. You are the
elected official here. In a disaster situation I’m to take point,
however, I think you should be there too. Together we can do this.
Okay?” She had that deer in the headlights look, and merely nodded.
What is it with the nodding lately? Everyone seems to have lost
their voice. “For now, I think we should start with some lists. Who
do we think will be leaders? Who do we think could cause trouble?
Who are the seniors that might need help or checking on? Is there
anyone else like Leon, who is severely disabled? Oh, and who has
wood heat?”

“I don’t know, Allexa. Are these really
important issues?” she asked me dismissively.

“They might be, Anna. I think we should have
the answers before we need to ask the question, especially
concerning the elderly and the disabled,” I stated firmly.

“It’s only been a few days, and we really
haven’t been affected by the earthquake. No one seems to be all
that worried.”

“They may not be worried right now but what
about tomorrow or the next day when everyone starts to realize just
how short our local food supply is? We are going to want to know
who is out there that needs our help,” I insisted.

Stubborn as she was being, she finally saw my
point after a discussion. The sun was going down by the time I left
her office.

* * *

JOURNAL ENTRY: November 13

The power went out for a couple of hours this
evening, but it’s back on now. We get our power feed from Wisconsin
and they are closer to ground zero than we are. I’m wondering how
long the power stations will continue to be operational. It would
only make sense for all the nuclear reactor plants to go into a
systematic shutdown to prevent a major incident, like the
Fukushima, Chernobyl, or Three Mile Island situations.

Hundreds more minor aftershocks continue to
hamper any rescue efforts along the New Madrid fault. It’s a mess
down there.

The power went out again early this morning and
hasn’t come back on.

I had another meeting scheduled with Anna
today. It’s a good thing the township hall is only four miles down
the road from me. I might be using up my allotted gas just going to
town, although that will last only while the roads are open. The
weather was mild until yesterday, when the temperatures dropped
into the twenties and we got a dusting of snow. This is only the
beginning. Average snowfall here is almost
200
inches in a
season, and I’ve seen 360 inches in some areas. If that happens
no
body will be getting around.

Anna’s office has only one small window, and
with the gloomy gray skies, it was dark in there. I brought one of
my battery operated lanterns and set that on her desk while we went
over our lists. She looked longingly at it, so I gave it to her. I
didn’t tell her I had a few more. I reminded her that it took
batteries and she needed to get some from Joe.

We decided to post important notices at the
township hall and at the post office. There hasn’t been any new
mail in a few days, yet D.J., the postmaster, is there anyway. The
office area where our postal boxes are is open twenty-four hours,
and it is a good place to leave important information. Fram’s might
be another good place for notices. We decided that the first notice
will be a special town meeting scheduled for Friday at noon.

Considering the fuel delivery disruption, we
discussed the rationing issue and Anna decided to simply shut down
Joe’s gas supply to save it for the EMS, fire trucks and the road
crews, eliminating the need for rationing. People might be more
accepting of that. If someone needed gas it would be allotted on a
case by case determination. A few of us would need a few gallons
each week to get to the offices: Anna, myself, Pete our township
handyman, Mike the fire chief, and Maye, the newly elected clerk.
Everyone else lives within walking distance. It might be a long
time before fuel comes available, so I think it was a wise move,
and I was secretly glad that I didn’t have to make that
decision.

Anna’s come around quickly, I think partly
because her brother Dennis, the former supervisor, is a nurse in
the city and has relayed some horror stories about these past few
days. Thankfully, she’s willing to work with me in a joint effort
to ensure the safety of the town.

We now have a more accurate view of our
resources and a better picture of our growing needs. We had lists
of who was where that might need help and I’ll combine them into
one list later tonight when I get back home. Our biggest dilemma is
going to be food. I said I was working on something and needed to
talk to Pastor Carolyn before I discussed it. Anna seemed satisfied
with that but I think that she just doesn’t want to dwell on it. I
was not about to shatter her snow-globe world with the fact that
food is really our
major
concern, or would be shortly.

We also have lists of everyone over
sixty-five years of age. I was surprised that there are
seventy-eight seniors, and many of those were living alone, plus
everyone who was disabled or has medical issues. We have a list of
known hunters, a guesstimate of those with wood burning stoves, and
who had a CPL. I had to educate Anna that it meant a Concealed
Pistol License. I still needed to call Karen, Ken, and Bill about
being deputized. Thankfully, the cell phones are still working. The
tower I see from my computer room has a massive battery system that
is constantly being charged by the grid. When the power is out the
batteries take over and can last about a week. After that, no more
cell service and no more internet until power to the grid is
restored.

* * *

JOURNAL ENTRY: November 13

The house was really cold when I got home. I
was away so long that the fire in the stove had gone out. I need to
ask Don if he could come over during the day and put in a couple of
logs when I’m gone for an extended period. A big advantage to my
brother being right across the road is that he’s close and I trust
him with the keys. With the stove cold, I used up some propane and
lit the gas stove with a match. Mac and cheese for dinner may not
be very nourishing, but it was hot and quieted my grumbling
stomach.

More news from the disaster zones today....
Tent cities are going up all around the East Coast, trying to
shelter the victims from the hurricane. With the nor’easter that
hit right after the earthquakes, it seems to be a losing battle for
FEMA and the Red Cross. People are really angry at the government
for not doing more. What is the government supposed to do? Those
that are screaming the loudest are the ones who refused to get out
before the hurricane made landfall, despite being strongly
encouraged to do so. I still don’t understand that mentality. I
just don’t.

The news helicopter photos of Missouri are
surreal, like clips from a bad movie. One report said the National
Guard was called in; another said it was the Army. One interesting
and sad item was the destruction of a zoo. Buildings were toppled
and fences were ripped down by the falling debris, which means
animals are now on the loose. I must be getting punchy because all
I can think is “Lions, and Tigers and Bears. Oh, my!”

It’s late and bad jokes are not my style. I
need sleep.

* * *

The morning was bitterly cold when I went to
Eagle Beach to see John for his weekly massage. It was pleasantly
warm inside and lights were blazing in every room. It was obvious
that the generator was working well. Steve was still cooking
breakfasts, which seemed odd. Usually by the time I arrive,
everyone has eaten and he’s in cleanup mode. It seems that not all
of the guys are doing their shifts at the mine, and are just
hanging around the house. From what I’ve heard of Green-Way Mining
Company, that won’t be tolerated for very long.

John was unusually quiet and preoccupied.
When I asked him what was wrong, he said he couldn’t reach his
family in southern Indiana.

“I know they’re all grown adults with
families and lives of their own, but they’re still my family and
I’m worried. I can’t reach my mom either,” he mumbled into the face
cradle of the massage table. I stilled my hands on his back, trying
to give him some of my positive energy.

“Well, it’s likely that they’re fine and that
it’s because the cell towers are down. I’m expecting my cell to go
out soon. The tower near me has only a few more days of backup
power,” I said trying to be reassuring. It got me thinking about
lost communications. What would we all do? It’s been so easy to
pick up the phone and call whomever we wanted. Even though it’s
only been a few days, I needed to talk to Eric. What if I never
heard from him again? My sons mean the world to me. I understood
how John was feeling.

* * *

Back home the chores still needed to be done.
I hauled in extra wood and more kindling since the nights are
getting very cold. I fed the chickens and let them out into their
sheltered yard. Then I started up the generator so I could have
water to wash dishes. After the dishes I washed the globes on all
the oil lamps and topped the kerosene off. While the gennie was
going, I took a quick shower and washed my hair, glad again for
having my hair cut, donating eighteen inches to Locks for Love. I
filled a bucket of water for flushing and then shut the gennie
down. An hour in the morning and an hour at night should keep the
deep-freeze going for a while. One of my goals is still to use
something from the freezer every day for dinner. In time I’ll be
able to keep some of it in coolers on the deck, but not until the
temps stay below freezing. This food
cannot
go to waste!

Tonight dinner will be chicken legs and the
last of the romaine lettuce for a salad. I’m really going to miss
salads. I still have half a head of garden cabbage in the fridge.
Cabbage keeps so well, especially when it’s that fresh. I need to
grow more of it next year. There had been a half row of Swiss
chard, however the chickens made short work of that. Next year I’ll
protect it better. I will keep this head of cabbage for fresh
coleslaw. When it runs out, I will use the coleslaw I canned last
summer. I wish I could thank David, the group’s canning guru, for
that recipe, but he hasn’t been online lately. In fact, all the
internet groups are strangely quiet. I think we’re all quite busy
just surviving.

* * *

JOURNAL ENTRY: November 14

While I had the generator running this
evening, I watched the news for a bit. The Mississippi river is
slowly draining because of the new “dam” near Hannibal. There’s
talk of blasting it open, except they were afraid of triggering
another quake. The Army Corp of Engineers is there now, scratching
their heads like the rest of us. It’s possible that they can blast
in increments to relieve the pressure. What they don’t want to do
is send a twenty-foot wall of water cascading downriver. What
bridges along the river that didn’t collapse during the actual
quakes are being examined, and most of them have structural
problems which make them unsafe for heavy traffic. The good news is
that some of the bridges can be used for foot traffic. The death
toll keeps climbing, and now there is a plea for body bags. At this
point, one of the new concerns is disease, however they haven’t
said
what
disease they are concerned about.