Merchandise and Food Shortages in a National Crisis

[Bally002]

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@"Bally002"  I heard an enlightened Guru once said that before enlightenment comes the secret is to chop wood, fetch water! And the secret for when enlightenment has already come is to chop wood, fetch water ok!


Tick that box each day okay!




@"OmegaLogos"

That explains a lot.

When I was a teenager, I chopped wood and fetched water. A lot. Hauled logs out of the forest by horse-power, or if the brush was too dense for a horse, then by Ninurta-power. Then we cut them into chunks and I split the chunks with a double-bitted axe. It warmed you 3 times that way - when you brought it out of the woods, when you split it, and finally when you burned it.

I fetched water 12 gallons at a time, in 1 gallon milk jugs tied into twos. I criss-crossed the binding ties of two pairs of jugs into an "X" so that I could carry 4 gallons in each hand, with 4 more over my shoulders, two draped across each shoulder. And I carried it like that for about a mile or so from the spring I got it from.

I was "enlightened" back then, from that...

... but then I got old, stopped doing it, and got all stupid again.

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@"Ninurta"
To put things into perspective from my end and I do appreciate 'those' days as you outlined.  I had to go away from chopping wood by hand.  The axe and block splitter play havoc nowadays with my shoulders and wrists.  Hence after the fires pretty well wiped us out I invested in a good hydraulic log splitter, a couple of finer chainsaws and a small but tough 4 x 4 ute.  We drag the timber into a cleared area, I cut and load, 'true love' operates the splitter.  The ute is loaded and we deliver and unload for our clients.  So it's a bit of pocket money.  The hard woods here can be a pain for hand cutting with an axe or cross saw.  We tend to keep our hearth going 24/7 during these days so we load up inside the house as well to keep the cuts dry.

As for water, presently I have plenty, dams are full, creeks flowing and tanks overflowing.  My problem is pressure since the 'header' tank burnt down and power at times can be a problem.   For cleaning, mopping, washing etc we use water from a tap outside on a reserve tank and bucket that in,  I also use it for the kettle on the hearth.  Our inside drinking and bathing water comes from the main tank and while it on occasions has run dry it hasn't for a while now due to all the rain, which is good for the gardens and poultry outside.  No more fetching in that sense.  

So it's not like the old days as we have a few creature comforts and machinery to make it easier but each day there is a little of those tasks and we like it that way.  We have an AA meeting each night at home where we consume a rather large amount of bourbon and frothies and discuss the days work over a feed.  My only complaint is the chore I hate - replacing a gas bottle and restarting the gas system.  Fucker never starts up in the rain.  Many a singed eye brows and beard.  

Kind regards,

Bally :)