In
the last couple of days, we have had some “brown outs” where the power has
dimmed for a few seconds and then gone back to full strength. Given the level
of the heat wave that we are experiencing, no one wants to lose the air
conditioning but we are also not really clear on what is and isn’t going to run
under the power of the emergency generator if it has to kick on. We are
assuming that certain vitals will keep running but we don’t know 100% for sure.
So
Kelly and Shala, both being teachers, decided to make a sundial so they would
be able to know what time it is if or when the power goes out. Now before
everyone starts drinking your Hatorade and saying it is dumb to make a sundial,
you have to take into account the amount of downtime that we have.
This place is secure.
We are locked down and our system seems to be working quite well. People have
to keep their minds occupied. If making a sundial was a way to pass the time
and forget about all the walking corpses outside, I say make a hundred sundials
if it makes you feel better.
But have you ever
seen those situations where some people are so smart, they cannot see the
forest for the trees? After the girls made the sundial, they were struggling
with the mathematical computations to figure out how to set the dial to be the
right time. They were talking about things like the curvature of the earth and
trying to figure out the math.
Becca heard what they
were talking about, looked at her watch, and then walked over to the sundial
and turned it to 2:34. Problem solved. I think Kelly and Shala must have
laughed the hardest. Make sure to see the forest despite the trees, people.
Don’t get lost in the fog of overthinking things. Or as they tell you in the
military, “Keep it simple, stupid.”
Still, despite the
heat, we have been using the roof more. Several of the group has set up a
pretty nice garden using the seed packets from the produce, the fertilizer, and
soil from the pallets that were stacked outside. Hauling water up to the roof
is kind of a pain but we do it as a group.
We continue our
regular sniping duties and the use of the homemade silencers help keep our
location a little more concealed. I think the activity on the roof has improved
the mood of most. That sunshine and fresh air really helps people forget that
we are trapped in this store… if only for a little while.
We just need to keep
this good feeling train a rolling along…
