Glen Tate: 299 Days: The 17th Irregulars

Mark and Tammy talked about it and decided the risk of Tammy driving a short distance alone, well-armed, was worth it because Mark could be back at Pierce Point all day to do all the things he needed to do there.

Oh crap, Tammy thought, as she was leisurely driving to work. She remembered that there was a reason she had been keeping her commitment to being on time lately. Given the dangers of getting to work, the power company had a system where an alarm went off if an employee was late, alerting them to a possible ambush on the roads.

Tammy was now a solid twenty minutes late. They were probably out looking for her. She got on her cell phone and called in to let them know that she was fine, but running a little late. She decided that her habit about being on time was more important than being a free spirit and being late. She was just wired to be on time.

Tammy was technically the billing supervisor, but they weren’t sending out bills anymore, but the company found plenty of other work for her to do. She had been at the power company for over thirty years and knew how just about everything worked. She had evolved into the company manager’s right hand person, and could problem solve just about anything, which was good since the company had plenty of problems that needed solving.

When the Collapse started, they had the blackouts to deal with. The Feds shut down the grids when the hackers figured out how to overload the system with surges of power. The hackers, who everyone thought were the Chinese even though the news kept saying they were teabaggers, disabled the computer routing switches regulating the levels of electricity in the lines. With the flow switches off, it was very easy for too much to flow and blow up a line along with all the transformers on that line. Because the switches were sometimes off due to the hacking, the Feds shut the system down for about two days until they got control over the computers. Then they lost control a few days later from more hacking—from Russia this time—and shut things down again. This happened a few more times, but the Feds were getting a better handle on things. Now blackouts were less common.

A new problem quickly emerged. Running a power company required lots of machines, which required lots of replacement parts that need to be delivered by trucks, which required diesel and safe roads. The same just-in-time inventory fiasco that the rest of the U.S. was facing also hit the power company. They ran out of parts in two days. They had to shut the power off to a third of the county while they waited for a $35 part to arrive. When the highways were jammed and the diesel was gone, it took three days to get the part. It was the company manager’s friend who lived in Seattle who braved the roads during the initial chaos and got the part there.

The distribution system improved slowly, although it was still horrible. The government threw almost all their military and law enforcement resources at the task of taking control of the highways. With troops and police forcibly occupying onramps and off ramps, and overpasses, the government prevented civilians from travelling, sometimes violently. Only government-approved shipments such as fuel, spare parts, and military supplies, got through. Similarly, the government took over all the gas stations and refineries. After a while, they were getting enough fuel out to take care of the greatly reduced levels of travel. Tammy estimated that there was only about five percent of the normal traffic, and most of that was semi and other trucks and military vehicles. Individuals like her, driving cars, were almost unheard of. More and more people were staying at home waiting for food to arrive at a store and then walking there to get it. They spent most of their day trying to stay safe and trading rumors about who had supplies for sale.

“Mornin’ Tammy,” Dan Morgan said. He was at the gate, as usual. “A little late this morning,” he said to her. He was so on top of everything. Dan was doing a fantastic job of running the guards.

The rest of the drive to work Tammy thought about how lucky they were. All the amazingly talented people they had out there. All those guards who were well-armed and so organized. Other than the differing guns and clothes, they looked like a military unit. There was also that fabulous Team who took down the animals in the meth house. Pierce Point had Rich, who made everyone feel so safe. And there was Grant who really got people feeling like they were going to make it. Then there was Lisa. A doctor! They actually had a doctor out there. Pierce Point had a clinic and even a newspaper and a church. Life was semi-normal for Pierce Point. It was different but it could have been a lot worse. Tammy felt like they had the things they needed out there, like security and food, but none of the unnecessary things that had previously piled up in their lives, like running all over town to buy this year’s outdoor furniture, only to throw it in a landfill after a summer or two. Getting new outdoor furniture had been on her to-do list right before May Day. She had actually been stressed out over which lawn furniture to buy for the coming BBQ season. She now realized just how insignificant a thing that was to worry about. Her perspective felt like it had shifted dramatically. Being safe, having food, the lights being on, and having her family safe with her was what mattered. That’s what matters, she said to herself. Although, in a weird way, she wanted her “normal” life back, like the mad dash for this year’s patio furniture. She didn’t really want the patio furniture; she just wanted the “normal” of the patio furniture.

As she kept driving the few miles to work, as fast as she wanted because there were no cars on the road, Tammy thought about her family. Mark was hunting and fishing, which he loved to do. He had been happier than she’d seen him in quite some time. Little Missy was having a ball with Manda and Cole Matson. It was good for her to have some friends and a teenage girl to look up to.

But Tammy’s biggest joy was her son, Paul. He had come out of his shell. He had been so depressed before the Collapse. That custody fight was so hard on him and he had gained all that weight. Before the Collapse, he spent all his time laying around the house and complaining about everything.

But not now; he built that metal gate for the entrance. She thought about it every day that she went through the gate on her way to work. He got to put his metal fabrication skills to use and was proud of what he’d done.

But, the best thing for Paul was that he was on the beach patrol. He was putting his knowledge of the currents and tides of the inlet to great use. They were out there preventing people from coming ashore and doing God knows what to Pierce Point. Paul was so busy that she didn’t see him much anymore. But, when she did see him, she noticed how much weight he’d lost, how tan he was, and how he smiled all the time. He was confident now.

Things were pretty good, considering. She pulled into work and got ready for a day of problem solving. She had a feeling she would be doing a lot of that today.

As she pulled into work, Tammy noticed two things. First, the clock in her car said she was late. Second, there was a new vehicle in the parking lot. It was a State Parks Department truck, which was odd. The nearest state park was a few miles away, but had been closed for over a year because of the budget cuts.

Tammy parked in her usual spot and got out, hurrying because she was late. Bill Stadler, the company manager came out and motioned for her to come over to him.

Bill was in his sixties, had glasses, and wore short-sleeved buttoned shirts during warm weather. He had a pocket protector and something not too many electrical engineers had: a way with people. He was one of the kindest people Tammy had ever met.