S Ison - Russian Doomsday

“So, what have you and Margo been up to?” Sayer asked, smiling.

“Well, we’ve bought a cabin, off grid, out on Mozingo Lake. We close on it in September,” Pike said, a grin plastered on his face.

“Damn, brother, that’s some swift moving on your part, and good on ya, man. You might as well do it right, right outta the gate,” Sayer said, laughing. He rocked back and smacked his knee.

“I had a long time to think on my way out here. If I rent, there is always a chance I might have to move. Also, in apartments there’s never enough room. I’m staying with Margo while we wait to move over to the cabin. She has a two-bed, but we’re running out of room trying to stockpile in there.” Pike pulled at his hair, recalling the frustration of finding places to store supplies. “There would be no way to defend the apartment either. It’s really an open target.

“That is the truth. You need room to store all your supplies and I’m pretty sure that thieves would hit the easiest targets first before moving on.”

“The cabin is expensive, especially if nothing ever happens, but I believe it to be a worthwhile investment,” Pike continued, shrugging. “We’ll at least leave a smaller carbon footprint and become self-sufficient.” He didn’t know why he felt he had to explain his actions. Perhaps he just wanted Sayer’s approval.

The waitress came with their drinks and both men thanked her. Pike took a sip of his beer. It was cold and refreshing. Both men enjoyed the moment, sipping their beer. A few minutes later, the waitress came back with their food. They began to eat.

“Joy, my girlfriend and I live out on a farm. It isn’t big, and it’s near town, but we can plant and grow our own food. We have a couple goats and a few chickens too,” Sayer said.

“That sounds like a good idea, chickens I mean. Once we get moved in, I think we might start our own flock. Margo and I also talked about what would happen if radiation hit, and I wanted to run an idea past you and see what you think.”

“Sure, go ahead. And chickens are also good for manure to fertilize your garden, by the way, nice and organic.”

“Good idea. I’ll let Margo know. I think she’d like chickens. I just hope her dog doesn’t eat them. Anyway, we were thinking that maybe we should put away some dirt in plastic containers.” Pike watched the other man, hoping he wouldn’t laugh at his ideas. “We think, just as a precaution, we could use that to grow crops, or at least some food. Margo’s going to order non-GMO seeds, you know, the heirloom kind, the ones that reproduce. We found out that a lot of seeds you buy in stores won’t reproduce,” Pike said.

Sayer laughed. “Yeah I know heirloom seeds. And that’s a good idea about storing soil. It would take a hell of a lot of containers, but maybe that would be a good project, just for in case. I have a small metal container on a trailer. I might use that to store soil in. It’s something to think about. It would at least give us a fighting chance, and is an easy do,” he said, taking another drink of his beer.

“We’ll get worms from the bait shop to put in there; don’t want irradiated worms,” Pike laughed.

“That’s good. And you are right. If we get radiated, it will kill everything in the soil, I think. Microbes and worms and seeds. Or it will mutate them. I suggest putting tiny holes in the bottom of the containers. You don’t want the worms to suffocate… not sure they can… don’t know how they breathe.” Sayer laughed, then shrugged.

“I also wanted to discuss getting some weapons. I don’t want to go about asking people I don’t know, but I assume you have someone you buy guns and ammo from?” Pike asked. He was a little nervous about this subject. People got a little weird when talking about guns.

“Sure, no problem. I know a couple guys.” Sayer took a napkin and pulled out the pen from his shirt pocket. He scribbled a couple of names and numbers. “These are real good men, they have good weapons, and ammo of whatever you’ll need. They’re also fairly priced. You’ll need to check your Missouri’s gun laws, but I don’t think you’ll have much trouble. I think you’ll need a license to carry. Make sure you do it legal,” Sayer advised.

“Thanks, I’ll do that when I get back home. There just seems so much to do. Margo and I feel a little overwhelmed with it all.”

“One step at a time, one thing at a time,” Sayer said kindly. “You’re already thinking ahead, like with the planting and soil, seeds and weapons. If you’ve never used a gun before, make sure you get some kind of training. You don’t want to hurt yourselves.”

“I sure will. Margo and I plan on finding a shooting range and practicing. We want to become proficient. We want to make sure we don’t injure ourselves, and we both want to feel comfortable handing them. I’ve never handled a gun, and she hasn’t either. We thought it important we did our utmost to be responsible gun owners,” he said.

“I’d also invest in a gun safe, have it put in the basement if you have one,” Sayer suggested. “Make sure it is secured to the ground. You might also want to have some of your ammo and such put in other locations, easily accessed in case you are raided, in an apocalyptic scenario. The same with your long-term food supply: you don’t want all your eggs in one basket.”

“Good info, thanks. Once we get settled in, I’d like it if you came out to see us one weekend. We can sit and brainstorm once you see the property,” Pike said, smiling.

“I’d like that. I can bring Joy. She’s now getting on board with it all as well. Maybe she and Margo can also brainstorm about what to do with planting and all. Joy can also give her tips about farming and medical stuff. The more you know, the better prepared you’ll be. I’m always reading, always looking and doing research. You can never know too much.” He grinned.

Pike nodded. He was liking Sayer a lot. The man seemed down to earth. Not a blowhard or know-it-all. Some people talked a lot but really didn’t know what they were doing. His mind went briefly to Johnny and a pang of sadness swept through him. He wondered how he and Bev were doing? He also wondered if they’d thought any more about POSEIDON and Russia.

“I hear you. Sometimes I have information overload and I feel like my brain is going to explode. I dream about this stuff, I swear.”

“I think once you get settled into your cabin, the pressure will be off and you can relax a bit. You’re almost there, and it sounds like you have a good amount of supplies set by already. Only a little bit longer.” Sayer grinned, and lifted his beer in salute. Pike grinned back and raised his glass.

An hour later, Pike paid the bill, insisting on it. All in all, it had been a good first meeting. Sayer had listened to him, didn’t talk down to him, and he really appreciated that.

“Next one is on me, Pike. I mean that,” Sayer mock-glared at him as they walked out the door.

“Thanks,” Pike grinned. “I’ll head on back, then. Thank you again for everything. It was really good meeting you. Once we get settled into the cabin, I’ll definitely give you a call.”

“Sounds good. Be safe out there, Pike.”

They went to their trucks, and Pike waved once more before he drove away. He looked forward to his visit at the cabin, when they could talk more.

He figured he’d swing by the one of the gun sellers on his way home. He would feel better once he had some more of the items on his long list of must haves. Each time he crossed something off, it felt really good. But then they’d think of something and it would be added to the list, making it longer again. He hoped that Sayer was right, that once they’d moved in, the stress of it that was weighing down on him would lessen.