Chapter 14

[Preservation – Jim in Maine]

The next morning, I got up and cleaned up in the bathroom. When I came out dressed and ready, I could smell breakfast. Going into the kitchen, Gina, Carol, and Cathy were in there talking. Gina got up and checked on the food saying, "It'll be ready in a minute." True to her word, it was and we all loaded our plates with food and a cup each with coffee.

We ate quietly waiting for the rest to appear. We were on our second cup of coffee when the doorbell rang. Gina came back with the other four people.

Carol would drive her new Expedition that was admired by all. Gina, Cathy, and I would ride with her in it. The two older men, Steve and Ben, would share an old pickup and the other couple, who I learned were Fred and Roxy, had an older car. Carol led out and we drove the short distance to Ellsworth and the Wal-Mart Supercenter. It wasn't locked and we all went inside. I had asked on the trip if they knew of anyone alive in Ellsworth and the three ladies did not think anyone survived. Cathy had worked in Ellsworth and said that no one she knew had made it.

I led everyone to the guns. Steve and Ben were experienced hunters and helped me find and pick guns for everyone. Cathy was familiar with guns and picked out a 30.06, a twenty gauge shotgun, and a pistol and holster quickly. She also grabbed plenty of ammunition for her choices. She had brought a cart for herself, loaded her choices and announced that she needed some new clothes and would be there picking out what she wanted. I admitted to myself that she had a nice figure particularly considering the other options. She wasn't my idea of a love, or even lust, interest but she was the closest to my age and probably available.

Fred and Roxy picked out guns for themselves. He was somewhat familiar with guns but she was not. She went with his suggestions and they loaded their cart. They left to pick up other items that they wanted. Steve and Ben were working with Gina and Carol to help them. After a while, Gina came over and asked me what I thought of the choices. I suggested that a twelve gauge was a bit heavy for a woman to handle and that they might look at twenties or even a four ten. The pistols were better choices for women to use being thirty-two revolvers. Steve and Ben kept the shotguns and the women picked out smaller bore ones. We loaded up on ammunition, cleaning supplies, and anything else we could find that looked useful. Everyone then went to the clothing area and picked up some fresh clothing. Cathy stopped me and asked, "Would you consider taking someone with you when you leave? I am at loose ends with them."

"I hadn't thought about it, but I will, think about it, that is."

"I understand. I hope you will let me come. I'm a pretty good cook. I can shoot and drive anything. My dad had taught me to drive his tractor when he wasn't off hauling OTR jobs. I don't want to stay here, no matter what. You are going to head south eventually, aren't you?"

"Yes, but I'm not sure when."

"All I ask is a chance. If it doesn't work out, then help me get some kind of rig of my own and we'll part company."

"I'll think about it."

We loaded up the vehicles and headed back. I rode in front again with Gina driving. We talked about shooting and the preparations they would need to make. Carol admitted that Ben had asked to join them in their trip. Gina chuckled at that and said that Steve had asked her. Cathy was quiet.

We pulled into Gina's driveway and Gina invited the four of us inside for supper. We had a snack lunch at the Wal-Mart so were hungry again. We trooped into the kitchen. Cathy asked to help Gina and suggested that Carol sit down with me and plan a route south. Carol looked a bit startled but did so.

"Carol, how far do you want to go and what would be your plans when you get to where ever you do go?"

"I'm not sure how far but we will need better weather than Maine winters. I think somewhere in the south where we can farm and raise some animals. Both Steve and Ben are from farming families and, if they come with us, that is what they will want. Sooner or later, the food in the stores will run out or go bad you said. We had best be prepared."

"With those thoughts, I would suggest Virginia, the Carolinas, or Georgia. The weather is milder down there though the winters are still a bit cold. We got snow regularly in Richmond. South Carolina wouldn't be bad. It's warmer but without too much heat. There are lots of choices. From here, the simplest route would be I-95. It goes along the east coast and you could stop when you wanted. If you take the guys with you, I would suggest two vehicles. There were other similar SUV's at the dealer available. Of course, a pickup would work, also, but I would get a new one. It's a long trip in an old car or truck."

Carol got up and talked to Gina quietly for a moment and left the kitchen. I could hear the phone beeping as she made a call. She had called Ben and asked he and Steve to come over after dinner and talk. She came back in and said they would come over after dinner.

Gina said, "Cathy, you have dinner under control. If it's okay with you, I'll let you finish and I'll make a pie for desert. We can have it when Ben and Steve get here." Cathy smiled and nodded.

Dinner was quite good and Gina discussed plans and asked about conditions in the south. When we finished and the dishes were washed, we sat in the living room with coffee. Cathy sat next to me on the sofa.

I said, "What about Fred and Roxy?"

Carol said, "They want to go off on their own eventually but not now."

Cathy said, "He looks at me wrong to be with Roxy. I don't want to be around him because he makes me queasy."

A few minutes later, Ben and Steve came to the door and were invited inside. Gina served them coffee and all of us pie fresh from the oven.

Gina told Ben and Steve that she and Carol were leaving Belfast and heading south soon. She said, "You two can come with us but you will need a new vehicle. There are plenty at the dealerships and you need to pick one."

Ben said, "I want to go and I believe Steve does, too." Steve nodded and Ben continued, "We can pick out a new truck or SUV tomorrow. Have you picked a route south?"

"Yes," Gina responded, "we will follow I-95 south at least to Virginia and probably all the way into South Carolina. We will be looking for farms where we can grow food crops and raise animals. That's as far as our planning has gotten. What do you think?"

"It works for me," Ben said.

"That should get us far enough south to avoid regular winter snows." Steve said. "I served in North Carolina in the army and it's nice country. South Carolina is, too. I went to Myrtle Beach on leave for a week once. It can get hot but we can find clothes down there to be best for the weather."

"Folks, there is one other thing that I would like to recommend. It's ham radio. Sooner or later, cell phones will fail as the power grid fails. Ham radios are designed for twelve volts making them easy to run off simple generators or even batteries. I can tell you where to find them and what to expect. The advantage of ham radios over CB's is that they are built for distance and have many more frequencies available to use."

Steve said, "My brother was a ham. There is equipment at his house that we could probably use. I'm pretty good with electrical things. I bet I could learn enough to operate his sets pretty quickly. Will you go with me tomorrow to check out what he has and what we can use and what we might still need?"

I chuckled, "Sure, it will be my pleasure. Using ham radio, we can stay in touch as we travel."

We talked some more. It was late when everyone went home.

I was pretty sure that Cathy wanted to stay but I offered no encouragement. I would probably take her with me as a companion but I didn't see her as a love interest. Our backgrounds were very different. However, she seemed to be fairly level headed and had some common sense. I was unwilling to think any further than that. I did invite her to join Steve and me in checking out his brother's gear. She said that she knew where Ted had lived and would pick me up in the morning.

The next morning, I rose, washed, and had another of Gina's great breakfasts. Cathy came over as we were eating and joined us for coffee saying she had already eaten. It was time to meet Steve and we took the 'Vette. Cathy directed me. She was wearing a tight pair of jeans and a blouse that showed off her cleavage to its best advantage. She was slim and moderately tall which made clothes look good on her body. Her plain face was washed and she wore little makeup. We pulled up at Steve's brother's house and there was a shiny new Expedition in the drive with Steve and Ben standing at the back of it grinning.