LET US EAT CAKE

“I hate to say this,” I announced to Mike this morning, “but we could probably use more toilet paper.”

So, after yoga, we went to Walmart, where the shelves were bare of TP, disinfectants, flour, etc. I think it was an eye-opener to Mike, who sorta felt all of this virus scare was happening elsewhere. I picked up a package of paper towels, some chicken broth, herbal tea, baking chips (very important), several boxes of cereal, etc., and we checked out.

“Now, take me to Albertsons,” I said. I got several loaves of bread, eggs, sour cream, cottage cheese – you know, the stuff I buy at Albertsons. AND -- one 4-roll package of store brand toilet paper.That should give us enough for the duration.

“I have never seen such interest in toilet paper,” laughed the cashier. I provided that Walmart is out. “So is Costco,” she said, “and we’re almost out.” After lunch we went to Winco where the TP shelves were also empty.

I admit that in the last couple of years, I’ve let my pandemic readiness slip, but we do have food and supplies, and when I go to the store, I pick up a few boxed or canned goods for a future need that seems to be immanent. Cake mixes on sale appeal to me, so we can always eat cake if push comes to shove. Our meals might not be nutritionally sound, but we won't starve.

And why is it we aren’t going to the store anyway? Are we afraid of catching the virus? Are we afraid of each other now? Or, are we afraid we’re going to be sick and won’t be able to leave the bed, let alone the house?

As for non-edibles, I have plenty of hand soap, cleaners, and disinfectants. (I like to buy cleaning supplies but hate to use them; hence, I already have those on hand.)

I used to have hand sanitizer – and maybe I still do on the farm where water is occasionally unavailable. The recipe for making my own with rubbing alcohol and aloe vera gel is online, and I could do that. Yes, it IS odd to have aloe vera gel on hand, but we needed it for some reason a few years ago, and I actually remembered and found it. They say we should use hand sanitizer sparingly, though, because it also destroys the good microbes that live on our hands. Hmmm. And in the event we need face masks, there’s always my old bras.

I’m a practicing homebody, so I don’t worry too much about contagion. We’re thinking about escaping to the farm some time soon, but although it’s looking more like spring, it’s still cold, especially in the mornings. We’ll probably make a preparatory day trip next week just to take some stuff and make a list of what we’re going to need.

Mike is wearing a wrist brace now. Physical therapy was postponed to next Tuesday due to the therapist’s illness. He’s sleeping better, I think, but still has occasional soreness. KW

STORMY WEATHER . . .

". . . wave upon wave of showers across the Northwest," the weather lady was saying as I surfed through The Weather Channel last Monday. Seems like they seldom talk about the Great Inland Northwest, probably owing to the fact that not many of us live here and our weather is usually not extreme. I took her report with a grain of salt. Often the storms do not materialize in our area.

But we have had shower upon shower since coming to the farm on Tuesday. Since we can see a lot of sky, we have watched the storms as they move through, some of them hitting us, some of them not. Yesterday morning (Thursday), we got up to what appeared to be a decent day. "Let's take advantage of this window of opportunity to thatch the trees," Mike said. I wasn't so sure there was an adequate window. Sure enough – these first photos show the storm that hit about 15 minutes later. By watching the sky and choosing our moments, we were eventually able to care for the trees. I even spied one little seedling tree lying on the ground – evidently an escapee from Mike's sack of trees as we planted. It appeared no worse for wear and Mike planted it.

Just after 4:00 p.m., a big storm hit, and we were glad for the safety of the house. Mike's weather station showed an actual temp of 39 while the wind chill was 20.7. The wind blew at an average of 29.5 mph with the maximum gust at 38.9. At 4:20, the electricity went off and was out about an hour. Mike called our rural provider, Clearwater Power, and was advised that the wind blew down a tree near Stoddard Electric on Riverside (Orofino) and that because of the back-up of traffic on the highway they were as yet unable to make the necessary repair. She wouldn't provide a timeframe for restoration.

I decided it was time to think like my grandmother. In the event that electricity would be off into the night, what did I need to do while I could see to get around the house? A kerosene lantern was ready, and I found some candles in a drawer and inserted them into holders. I chuckled to myself as I thought of Mother. She hoarded candles and I always thought that was a habit from the days when electricity was undependable. Candles and matches are an important part of preparedness. Mike ascertained that he could light our gas stove manually and a fire burned cheerily in the fireplace. So, we would have light, heat, and a way to fix food. No matter, though – the electricity was on about 5:20.

Today the weather is still unsettled, though we have had no rain. KW

READY TO GET READY

I continue, albeit slowly, to make my household pandemic ready. I began by cleaning the pantry in our modular home. It seemed like a daunting task until I realized I didn’t have to do it all at once.

[The photo on the left is of the walk-in pantry in our modular home. Strategically placed in the corner, it offers a bit of a buffer between the kitchen and the master bedroom. The photo on the right is a "before" picture on the shelves. I really like having a pantry; deeper shelves would improve it.]

I began my readiness project, as I call it, by removing from the pantry anything that wasn’t food. Storage containers were assimilated into the kitchen cupboards. A box of garbage can liners went out to the shed. I also moved my flour and sugar canisters to the kitchen counter near the mixer, which was handier anyway. Then one by one I cleaned and lined the shelves. This is the "after" photo.

Now I am ready to get ready -- but meanwhile, Let 'em eat cake!

ARE YOU PREPARED FOR THE GREAT DISASTOR?

In my opinion, it’s just not productive thinking to worry about potential disaster, whether personal, local, or worldwide. Paraphrasing Jesus, There shall be wars and rumors of wars; see that ye be not troubled. But I’ve often wondered if I shouldn’t better organize my foodstuffs and supplies so that we could be self sufficient for as long as possible. Recent articles in the Lewiston Tribune have presented the need for household preparedness should a projected pandemic materialize. One article suggested the importance of staying home in case of contagious disease and avoiding marketplaces. In another article an LDS family provided insight as to what provisions they have stored and websites where guidelines are provided.

The need for preparedness presents challenging issues. Mike and I are not good about keeping stores in reserve. When we finish the oat bran, we buy more oat bran. When we’re out of rice, we get more rice. (You get the idea.) It seems to me the better habit is to have one in reserve; when you open that one, buy another. But it’s another mindset entirely to think of what a household needs to operate for a long stretch of time. We determined to research this matter of developing an emergency storehouse, and we should probably do that in two places – in town and on the farm. It seems to us that we would go to the farm especially in the event of a pandemic – but what if we couldn’t? Several years ago I promised Milo that I would take care of his children on the farm if need arose. If your household is two people but you want to help more people, how do you deal with that? I will need guidelines.

What about you? Have you thought about this? Do you believe in this type of readiness? KW

[Farm families were largely self-sufficient, canning not only fruits and vegetables but also meat for the family's use. Often they were generous with neighbors, sharing of their abundance. Here's a photo of the Jack Dobson family about 1918: Jack, Vance, Myrtle, Ina, Shirley and seated in front are Ethel and Irl.]