09:20 – I called Barbara first thing this morning to make sure she knew about the Colonial Pipeline break, that the governors of Alabama, Georgia, and Tennessee had declared states of emergency, and that South and North Carolina may not be far from doing so. According to Google, it’s 532.1 miles from Cape May, New Jersey to Sparta, North Carolina using the most direct I-81 route. That’s more than she can get on a tank of gasoline, even driving at the most efficient speed. I suggested she fill up her tank today. I didn’t suggest that she buy a 5-gallon gas can or two and fill them as well, although I probably should have. There’s no good estimate on how long it’ll take Colonial to get the pipeline running again, but they’re building a bypass so it’ll probably be at least 10 days or two weeks if they work around the clock on it. As it stands, the East Coast has lost something like 50 or 60 million gallons a day of gasoline, which is a significant portion of the supply to the East Coast from Georgia up to New York City. I checked my Trooper, which has 4.7 miles on the trip odometer since the last fill-up.
I decided to re-watch Jericho while Barbara’s away. I notice new stuff all the time. For example, I hadn’t realized until last night that there are mountains or at least foothills right outside Jericho, Kansas. Until now, I thought of Kansas as flat. If I didn’t know the series was set in Kansas, I’d almost think they’d shot that footage outside Los Angeles.
Colin and I ate dinner from long-term storage last night: peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. As still more evidence on the mythical nature of best-by dates, the jar of peanut butter I used had a best-by date in March of 2013, 3.5 years ago. It was opened 18 months ago, and has been sitting on the pantry shelf since then. The odor and taste are indistinguishable from a fresh jar just opened. I’ll keep what remains in this old jar for further testing months or years from now, but I think it’s safe to say that the real shelf life of a jar of Jif Creamy peanut butter is at least five years, and probably a lot longer. At about $1.50 per pound, it’s a good shelf-stable way to store both oils and proteins that supplement grain proteins. Oh, the Welch’s Grape Jelly I used had a best-by date about a year and a half ago, and has been sitting open in the refrigerator at least that long. It was fine as well.
Bombings in New Jersey and New York City, a musloid slasher at a Minnesota mall, a cop ambush and mass shooting in Philadelphia. No word on just what caused the pipeline break. Things may be ramping up for the election. Historically, Committees of Vigilance arise when the government can’t (or won’t) protect citizens. I hope that never happens in the US, but I’m afraid it might.