Cool and very damp, with a chance of rain. Yesterday was nice, for values of nice that include high humidity, with overcast later, culminating in a quick inch or two of rain. It stopped after a couple hours and I did get to sit on the dock and spin the dial on the shortwave.
DX was good with just the basic antenna. NewZealand was loud and clear on 15mhz for at least a few hours. Cuba was silent at 1030pm but opened up after midnight. Fun to spin the dial from 2.500 to 21.000 and see what I can hear, especially with just the radio’s telescoping antenna.
It did remain mostly cloudy, so no observing. I was hoping for at least one good clear night this trip.
I got a bunch of small projects done before the rain hit, and even got in some fishing. Had a chat with another neighbor about hard times. He had a very extensive garden a couple of years ago when he’d lost his job, and kept most of the full timers in veg for the summer. Said he was ready to do it again if needed. His biggest concern is access to meds. Lots of folks out here are ‘tore up and worn out.’ SHTF is very physical and there will be a lot of folks in bad shape when their meds run out. There are a lot of folks that would have a hard time with the hard work, even now. His biggest emphasis was on the community banding together and sharing the load and the resources, particularly skills. Since he’s lived up here his whole life, his ties and local knowledge run deep.
It would be very interesting to see how RBT’s plan might have changed as he settled into his community. I don’t think that “volunteering to be the local wizard” would work very well, without years of laying the groundwork, building the relationships, and getting to be a known quantity. It’s becoming more and more clear to me that if we are facing a rapid (or even slow but severe) decline, who you surround yourself with is probably the most important choice you can make. The really stone cold b!tch of it is that the people most likely to get by, are also some of the least willing to accept and trust newcomers. If you are dropping into a community, you better have some VERY high demand skills, if you haven’t built the relationships.
Today I’ll do a few things to wrap up, weather permitting. Main concern is getting the lawn tractor back together and back in it’s shed. Then any little thing I can do before cleaning up and heading home, I’ll knock out.
I need to pass through north Houston before 3pm to make a pickup, so I’ve got my schedule set.
Stack up the things, and the skills, but REALLY get busy on relationships.
nick
(if your BOL is in a community where someone can say, “One of my second cousins’ wife’s best friends was the one who told me about the boat for sale…” you need a champion, and you’ve got your work cut out for you.)