DD Date 1983.12.07

December 7, 2011

It was a bit strange, but the local veterans of World War II honored the event that brought the United States into the last World War on this, the 42nd anniversary of what until this year had been the worst one-day man-made disaster ever. We had several veterans, most now successful business men and grandparents, that spoke at the community center at noon. Though they had someone in our church as a special speaker tonight, we opted to visit over at nearby Freedom Baptist Church instead. They had set up outside in their parking lot and had a full-fledged rally going on! Some of the local recruiters were even talking about trying to contact Washington - or whatever US military there might be still operating - to join the fight against Russia in what they suspect is an ongoing "World War III." They didn't get much of a reaction from the crowd, though.

The mail service has been cut back to one day per week, with the carriers doing their routes on bicycles, or in some cases motor scooters. Our mail comes on Wednesdays and is mostly notices from the consolidated government offices in Greenville. No mail has come in from outside of South Carolina - not even western North Carolina - in over two months. Some of the smaller retail stores - independent small businesses - have produced mimeographed ads to let everybody know that they still have stuff for those interested in Christmas shopping! Until the loss of electricity the only use of that old technology anyone ever saw was limited production for Sunday School and other church programs.

We found out over the weekend that the house we were going to be moved to won't be ready until spring! I was so hoping to be warming by a fireplace on Christmas Day. We have found out, though, that the wood burns a lot better in our converted heater than the oil did, so I guess we come out okay on that level. And who knows, we might be able to harvest our onions and garlic before we leave.

Facing Christmas not knowing the fate of our families elsewhere is really hard. Travel outside of even the county limits is almost unheard of. My family had a Marine Base nearby Albany that may have been hit, and you can bet Ft. Benning would have been a target. You know it must have been really bad since there has been no word from any government representatives since the attacks. Robbins might be a target as well. I doubt if the roads near there are drivable even if we had the fuel to get to Leesburg. Debbie's parents lived in Rhode Island and may have been traveling home from church in Connecticut when the bombs fell. I wonder if there are targets worthy of nukes in in that area. This is getting depressing. I think its time for a family prayer meeting.

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