Hemlocks organization preliminary design as of 6/22/2014

Hemlocks organization preliminary design as of 6/22/2014.

Warning, this is a very long post.

The mission is to survive until things get better.

Here's a start organizational  idea, since one cannot do it all, nor can we, nor should we plan on it.  Said another way, we humans need to have people focus on jobs that benefit us all, like be thinking about it ahead of time.  I happen to live in such a community. And this is a start organizational idea, so many changes may come. Often it may take a larger community to do the best to survive . So this draft assumes ideas are more important that individuals or one Family, though some combination is obviously best. Ideas never die, though individuals do. The general idea is to have an operational organization, with a local "city-type" organization for basic needs under it. It will probably take at least a few weeks for things to settle down and routines to become just that.  After that, expect more "improvement" changes to happen in any community, including yours.

The concept is relatively simple. The entire organization has the mission of surviving until things get better. Under that organization is a community setup to provide all the usual services for all in the organization to use as part of surviving.  I can imagine some functions may migrate from the "organization" to the mayor (a city-type position) as "final" things evolve.  In the end, it takes a community to succeed, or so I believe.  There will be many successful communities, by the way.

H1 - Personal and administration.  Think assignments as to living and sleeping (to include the two cottages and barn and 4 storage sheds) and bedding (the Hemlocks has some sleeping bags ( like seven (+) I think) , etc.  Plus there is a 12 person tent, four cots, a three sided Cliff Field Pool shelter and outhouse, and many sleeping pads. There's also probably 5+ sets of high tech long johns, too (adult size, and some for kids). There's also many extra clothes. Let the boss know just who is here at the time (once a week in writing). Maintain a welcome aboard plan, to include sponsors to teach new arrivals "the way things are setup" . Always mention not flushing  bleach, antibacterial stuff, prescription meds, prescription glasses,  water for cleaning paint brushes, oil & grease, hand wipes & female sanitary products, etc & etc. The intent is to maintain the gravity septic tank system, which uses bacteria to "digest" things like poop, pee, and routine home cleaning needs. Things that the septic system can't handle should go into the dump (a hole in the ground), since we do have to get rid of this stuff. Bottom line, keeping the septic tank system running protects our long term health, like not getting cholera, as an example. Toilet seats should be left with the lid closed. Hair must cleaned out of the drains when it happens. Each "roof" will have a senior person in charge for all reasons, to include  basic health and sanitation and fire prevention. Each house has a broom and dustpan to use to clean. Rugs can be hung out to beat the dust and dirt out of as required. Debris from cleaning should be just "thrown outside" as a start. If the debris builds up, then we can remove it to the woods.

            Sponsors will act as escorts as required.

            Maintain any performance review system that might be developed. We need competent leaders in charge in order to survive any hard times.

H2 - Intelligence and information, like what is going on around the World, the Hemlocks, and Monterey* that will affect us, and what will happen and when.  Monitoring the emergency radios (already here, both AM/FM/CB/Weather and World Bands) is part of the job. Maintain the world map of where the radio broadcasting locations that  still exist. Keep track of a calendar and daily time (the Hemlocks has two mechanical watches, two solar watches, and instructions on making a sundial). Walk, or ride a bike into town (about a 15 minute walk to downtown)  as necessary. Provide weather reports/forecasts/guesses using the board.  Some basic tools, like two  barometers, are here, already.  Be in charge of 1 of the many dry erase boards. The board should be a "news" board, to include a weather forecast. Keep it up daily in the AM. Maintain a separate monthly calendar board with input from the home school head person. Plan on using the same time and date system as Monterey.   * Use all sources, to include the barter people who do visit the local town.

Consider if we choose to establish a counter-intel shop, it will probably be located under the H2. A sample subject would be an impending attack on the place to gather food.

H3 - Operations.  This is further divided as follows:

                        A. Plans. Like thinking ahead, being it survival, the seasons, or whatever. Coordinate for community efforts, too.

                        B. Operations. What we do day to day to survive. Include running and tabulating  the vote once a year, like the summer solstice on June 21st.  As a rule, it usually takes about 3 months for anyone to learn a new job, and then they can do a better job. Even the USA military assumes a minimum of one year assignments these days. All positions are voted on, by name. Paper and printing and writing means will probably be short so using the old fashioned ways, like just saying  your vote to the right person may be necessary. There will be no kings or dictators at the Hemlocks.  So is the initial intent, anyway.

                                    1)  Maintain a journal of major events at the Hemlocks. Remember we have 2  point and shoot cameras, and about 6 or more hours of video capability, all run by rechargeable batteries. Plus we have a lot of paper and pens and pencils. The intent is twofold:  1) record the history, and 2) help future researchers when times get better. Also maintain Family Bible type information, like births, deaths, marriages, baptisms, confirmations, etc. Work with the religious lay leaders on this effort, also. Allow those leaving to carry this Family Bible type information with them if requested and we have the supplies to do so.

                                    2) Maintain a "safety" map of zones at the Hemlocks to deconflict hunting with all other activities (like collecting wild food).  Decide the zones for the map, which do not exist right now.

                        C.  Training. Like what we are doing to get better to survive. Include gun safety, patrolling, cooking and food storage safety,  gardening, soap making, hunting, first aid, wild plant recognition, construction,  bartering ideas and techniques, walkie talkies, and the existing electrical system. Some combination of different instructors and books and students will probably occur.  Some of these skills and practices can be bartered, too.

                                    1) Maintain the Hemlocks folders (about 2,000 pages) of how to do and make many things. Often it is skills that are old fashioned these days ( like how to make maple syrup).

                                    2)  Maintain the Hemlocks library of books. These books vary all over the place, like from old fashioned ideas to just reading for entertainment reasons. Even midwifery is included. Consider a librarian of sorts who maintains a list of those who have them. Also maintain all infrastructure books and how-to books.  Also maintain the two Kindles and the Wiki encyclopedia electronic  version. Do not loan any books outside of the Hemlocks area. We need them, too. Presently the Kindle 1 and the electronic wiki are in the EMP bucket in the main house large closet.

                                    3) Establish a reading list, and update it annually. Use the many Hemlocks books for the reading list. Reading can be a good way to teach, as well as entertain.

H4 - Logistics and communications.

                        A. Food and drinking water. For example, keep an inventory of available food (and seeds to grow food).  Develop a rationing plan as required. Assign a head cook to process, store,  and cook common food (working with the "mayor"). This includes canning and other such efforts. Using  wood stoves will be tough over time since it takes wood to heat and even cooking  skills to learn. As always, priority goes to healthy food to prevent disease, and cooking safety, with tasty meals being second in priority. Initially, there is a supply of paper plates, plastic "sporks", and other such things to help the transition to the basic washing of eating utensils and plates. There is deliberately no animal farming setup at the Hemlocks. Rather the intent is to using stockpiled powdered products as an alternative. Use the supplies for soup kitchen kinds of things for refugees, too. They can help themselves, also.

                        B. Medical. The Hemlocks should have a head doc, for example. This person will probably be more like a corpsman or medic or nurse or EMT technician or ex-military.  If we're lucky, it will be a doc or a veterinarian. There are many local OTC (over the counter) drugs also available to help them, too  (plus some breathing filters and extra gloves, etc.). Initially, someone with First Aid training is best, to include a parent.  Priority goes to preventive medicine efforts, with corrective medicine efforts second.  Things like rubbing alcohol (70%) and hydrogen peroxide (3%) are also stockpiled to keep infections down from boo boos. Emphasize preventive medicine during all welcome aboard briefs. The Hemlocks also has some broken bone setting stuff and basic dental  repair stuff, too. Also the main house middle room with the French Doors is the initial hospital room, too, to include mosquito netting stuff. I suggest making the barn (left side with concrete floor) an isolation ward if needed, and use the available 12 person tent, sleeping mats, sleeping bags, and sleeping cots as needed.  There is also a small shed behind the barn that can be set up as an isolation room. And of course the other three storage sheds can also be set up for isolation wards. One problem is keeping sick people warm and hydrated during the cold season. For those with burns, there is a special hydration kit available. Enemas are involved, so stand by for this sensitive subject.

Also this person is in charge of the diatomaceous earth (DE) products and powder dispensers at the Hemlocks (about 150+ pounds). All is food grade, also. Even the gardeners will be interested in DE products, and the chief doc is the person to speak with. DE is a barterable product, too. The main intent of using DE is control of insect outbreaks, like flea and bed bug infestations. The local farmers even mix it into feed to deworm their animals. Gardeners use it for garden bugs, though rain will wash it off. It is the old fashioned safe insecticide, and don't let the white colored powder worry you.

This person is also in charge of the limited number of razors for medical and personal purposes.  This person also controls the various lice combs and chemical treatments for lice.

Don't forget the old military way of putting our bedding out in the sun once a month or so to let the UV (ultraviolet) rays clean our bedding.

There are also some one time only antibiotic prescription drugs (times1). How to use them is up to the local head doc. Ignore expiration dates as they are stored in the dark and kept cool. Generally speaking, some work better above the waist, and some work better below the waist.  Don't count on them being available. Bring your own existing  antibiotic prescriptions and glasses  if you come to the Hemlocks.

Establish a morning "sick call" time for routine medical things.  Emergencies are on call for treatment all the time. In this regards the Hemlocks also has two emergency litters, and two body bags, also.

            160 one ounce (30 milliliter) cups with lids are available for the doc to use.

            Female beauty efforts, like hair reduction, with get a lower priority than life itself.

            Feminine hygiene must be dealt with also. After all, half the world's human population is female.

                        C.  Setting up outside barter relations. A local barter market will probably evolve, though the name may be locally  unique. Walking into town with security  (from people and animals) will usually be required. See the Hemlocks Mayor to borrow security gear, carts,  transportation things, and walkie talkies.  Make sure people know how to use the equipment. For example of barter, and if times are really hard, what do we trade for things we may need, like cooking oil if it runs out, for example. Most of these things help us in cooking or cleaning, and we do have a start up supply (about a month's worth or much more, depending on how many people are here and the season). Think about salt, which the Hemlocks has (90+ pounds to start). Now barter decisions in the end are the head persons decision, if time permits. This barter position may become very important, depending on how long the hard times may be. Worse case, consider a "barter pile or dry erase board" for a place for all to go to for Hemlocks barter, and also to place anything we are not sure what to do with, but will also provide the barter person with things to barter with. And remember we can barter services, like home school or medical, as well as other things, like midwifery. So do maintain a public barter dry erase board for what we both want and can trade for. Just where to place it is to be determined. We can always use extra wood for cooking and heating in the cold season. And the barter person(s) should be aware there are sometimes two or more local names for the same place. Even the "Hemlocks" is also called "Summerville Heights" by others, often older types around 2014 and earlier.

                        D. Getting stuff that helps the mission.  Mostly this means tools, and keeping  an inventory of what we have to heat and cook with. It also means checking on all the water, waste water, and local electricity sources. The Hemlocks has a good amount of tools, to include farm and garden type tools . Also develop a barter plan, both what we can trade away and what we seek, and want we want to preserve and use right here. We will have a dry erase board to help that effort. And remember, we won't have an  on-off system of barter. For example, if we have 100 zip lock bags of some size, perhaps 50 of them could be for barter purposes.

                        E. Establish and maintain a garden during the warm season.  The garden  tools to do so are already here. The Hemlocks is well set up in this area, including the best kind of seeds to plant for food, and we have an open and protected area to garden in. Though in the end, establishing and maintaining a garden is just hard work, including the security of it. And the security is both from humans and local critters and the weather. Plus the Hemlocks has three ways to can foods to eat for a later time. Right now one can use wood to provide the heat.

                        F. Designate a cemetery area, and prepare it. Appoint a religious lay leader, too (part time). Nothing like weddings, and funerals. Think ashes to ashes, and making our own wooden caskets for those who want a casket (and if we have the extra board wood). We may not have time or the ability to always make a casket , and we may just have to put a body in a hole for burial. For those who prefer cremation (and again if we have the extra wood),  think of a funeral pyre, Hindu style. In all cases, the Family decides what to do with the remains, including re-interment later (hence know where we are planted). For planning purposes, a cremated human remains are about the size and weight of a  5 pound bag of sugar. I assume some death from old age, accidents, disease, and bad people and wild animals. By the way, a cardboard casket is $270 if we could even get one in 2012. And the Hemlocks has two body bags, plus 200 sandbags that could be used to cover up the face or more of the deceased. Plus there are 60 metal markers and 20 more American flags to mark grave sites. Remember to dig holes deep enough (generally 4 to 5 feet deep)  to keep the wildlife from digging up the remains. And consider using  grocery bags or sand bags to collect cremated remains for burial. The head religious lay leader will maintain the cemetery map(s)/diagram(s) and markers so we know where our loved ones are buried. And digging tools can be pick axes as well as shovels. The probable cemetery areas have enough dirt to bury our relative's remains safely.

Consider using the marker tags, which are small (1" X 2 1/2"). In this case, also consider keeping separately Family type info and a map/diagram of where our loved ones are buried.

                        G. Assign hunters and trappers (include using snares and snare wire which are here) and gardeners and woods pickers, like for acorns and walnuts (fall...the Hemlocks has a manual grinder to make flour)  and morel mushrooms (spring), and  other mushrooms* and wild greens (summer), and all the other wild foods identified by the Petersen and Army books.  Assign fishermen when fish are available in the warm season (basic fishing stuff is here). Use all the books that are here.     *The mushroom picker is also the tester, just to ensure safe eating. If in doubt, don't pick them. Better be hungry than dead.

                        H. Maintain the "trash dump", and even  a separate food dump pit  (probably using carcasses left over from cooking) that will also attract worms for fishing, and probably yard dogs and local critters.  Establish a mulch pile, too. Mix dirt with trash remains to keep the yard dogs and critters from scavenging the place. Use periodic burning, also.

                        I. Keep track of the available 5 and 2 and 1 gallon buckets, and the larger plastic and galvanized  wash buckets, all which will probably be in high demand. Remember some buckets are more food qualified than others.

                        J. Key control. Be in charge of all the existing keys and locks.  There are many, and most are in the front room, but there is also a key locker in the new room closet. Use the bolt cutter as necessary when keys are lost or missing. Presently the bolt cutter is in the main room large closet.

                        K. Allocate distribution and use of the rechargeable batteries (AA's and AAA's, and some C and D and 9V cells). This will become a big deal. Most of the rechargeable batteries are "eneloop" style, which is good for the Hemlocks. This is an electrical engineer job, in the end, including setting up a schedule (approved by the mayor) to keep the available batteries topped off. Mostly the charged batteries are for security use. Second priority is to make sure all the smoke alarms are working (so no human fire watches are required) . Third priority is to provide some artificial light after the sun goes down. The water plant and the backup solar plant are the main ways to recharge our batteries.

                        L. Maintain all the sewing and shoe maintenance gear. Mostly that is thread, needles, duck tape, buttons, and shoe goo. The local doc might be interested in the needles if lancing of wounds and blisters comes into play. The intent is to maintain existing clothes, vice making new clothes. The Hemlocks does have flax seed for making new clothes if we have to go that route.  Sewing skills will help in screen repairing, too. The Hemlocks has no stockpiled yarn.

                                    1) Maintain a tanning of skins and hides setup to use what we hunt and snare for various purposes. Supplies are not available, so this will have a lower priority. Plan on using local water and animal brains as a tanning method, like the Indians  and our ancestors did. There is an article on how to do all this in the library.

                        M. Maintain and track the magnifying lenses that can be used for many things, including starting/restarting fires. Eventually all the matches will run out, maybe.

                        N. Periodically dump the wood stoves of ashes. Remember ashes can be used to make soap, so coordinate with the chief cook, also. And wood stove  ashes don't have to be cleaned 100%...something less can work about as well. And do leave an ash "bed" in the wood stoves as that helps them burn best. Generally, emptying ashes should occur around 3 or 4 times a year...it depends on the volume of use. More ashes equals more dumping of ashes as varied by the stove size.

                        O. Assign the location of the one existing fireplace ring (presently at the Cliff Field shelter area on 9/28/13).

H5 - Civil affairs.

             Mostly think of home educating our children, and keeping them mentally and physically helping  the effort.  Think "Little House on the Prairie".  Remember we can use school services as a barter tool, too.

            Develop an entertainment schedule for all, including the many available games or even music concerts kinda like the Grand Ole Opry, the local style. We can even listen on the world radio to music like the Grand Ole Opry, or any kind of music, really. Or we can have story telling or book reading  periods. Our imagination is the limit.  While we have some limited musical instruments, one can sing just fine without musical instruments, including during worship services.

            The initial plan is to use the second cottage "recreation room" as a one room school house, to include having a nice Ashley wood stove in it, one of the many  dry erase boards with writing kit (including a large one), the fold out table tennis table,  and other fold out chairs and card tables in this cottage.  Books can be read in either house, or on the porches. 

            Since the Hemlocks has many books, it is important for entertainment to teach reading, too. Recreation both to and from the Hemlocks can be done with permission from the Mayor. People coming to the Hemlocks for recreation will need sponsors, especially to escort visitors on and off the property. While security and being scouted out is always a concern, so is being a good neighbor as best we can. The junction of Hwy 70 with the driveway is an obvious place to meet and say goodbye to visitors.

Boss - like the overall head person in charge. This is the person who decides about conflicts and priorities, and guides the whole thing. Think of a savvy judge and jury along the way. People will come and go, too.  This person is also the supreme court, like including evicting lazy people, which will probably have to happen. Worse case, a person refuses to leave, makes unreasonable demands, or comes back. In this situation, a council of elders can impose up to a death sentence (the Hemlocks has a hanging bar and rope (also used for large game)). This person is like a savvy judge too. It is a tough job, but somebody has to be in charge.  Remember preserving  American moral values and the Golden Rule, too. Also consider providing a "grub stake" to evicted people, like a bag of beans (if we even have it). The golden rule always applies, in my way of thinking.  It could even be called "tough love". Resolve all conflicts as required.

Assistant boss - the boss needs help. Also work with the Hemlocks mayor to maintain a daily schedule for all to see or know about. All the H people report to him, too.

Hemlocks Mayor (this person reports to the Boss) - this person runs the local Hemlocks setup for all to survive and live. Work with the Boss when resolving conflicts. When many get cold and hungry, then this will be an unpopular position.  This person controls one of the many dry erase boards at the Hemlocks. The job includes:

            Compound security.  Develop a security plan and assign a security boss (kind of like a Chief of Police).  There is extra info on this subject (to include maps) in the If Times Get Hard 3 ring binder.  Assign "watches" to protect the compound, 24 hours a day. And oversee it.  Establish a patrolling checklist and use it (including challenge and passwords posted somewhere).  All this a big deal when other people and wildlife try to steal our food, or do other harm.  Many of these will also be doing other H (Hemlocks)  type services, like keeping a ship running 24/7. Keeping the Hemlocks electric plant going will have a higher priority than protecting the Cliff Field Pond, for example. Having a reliable time keeping means will become a big deal, especially when awakened like at 0345 in the morning to do a 4 hour security watch/patrol in the winter, and it is raining, for example. The Hemlocks has two solar powered watches and four  manual clocks/watches to help in this idea. Think 24 hour operations, plus people have to work during daytime, too. Consider the use of yard dogs, also.  All in all, this is a thankless, but necessary task, especially because the Compound is "walking distance" close to Monterey.  The Compound's proximity to Monterey is a two edged sword, so to speak. Like it or not, that is the way it is. Maintain the various weapons at the Hemlocks. The combination to the gun safe is in the front room in one of the bedroom tables' drawers. The two cottages have pepper spray and pistol crossbows and tasers for home defense. The main cottage also has a cattle prod and a spear by the front door of the main house. The guns are stored in the nearby front bedroom.

            The people manning the foxhole will provide their own "chamber pot" and take it with them at the end of their watch. Otherwise, the foxhole and area around it will become a health hazard eventually.  Plan B is to dig a big hole to use for toilet purposes in the vicinity of the foxhole. Plan C is a little bit of all solutions. Plan D is to use the one camping portable toilet. Whoever is on watch at 0900 has to dump the waste and return the camping portable toilet to its location, in this solution. In this case use some plastic bags if we have them, plus some kitty litter style things (like leaves and soil) work OK, too.  After all, if you gotta go, you gotta go, but nobody wants to be sick from bad health (like cholera and typhoid), either.

            Coordinate escort services with the H5 for visitors coming down the driveway from Hwy 70. Often this will be in conjunction with Hemlocks entertainment being offered.

            Religious services. Provide them on Sunday mornings. The Hemlocks needs a lay religious person(s). Best case we would have more for all the major religious beliefs. And we need them for the  rest of the week!, to include weddings and funerals. Some will probably marry in and out of the compound, as an example. Refugees and the ill need religious tending, also. Also work with the mayor to choose a baptism pond, tub,  or whatever is used. Sunday should be a "rest" day as best the leaders can make it.

            Monitor the food, drinking water, and waste water services. This includes bathing, and rationing the 700+ baby wipes that are an OK substitute for bathing while we have them. Those that prefer hot water can use the wood stoves  to make it with wood heating.  Boiling pots are here. Now priorities for using warm water are the makers choice (the mayor will probably make those that like hot water for bathing cut their wood and find the time). Assign a chief cook for the Compound. Food will be offered out of a common meal with a "chow call" signal, or just a plain schedule.  Individual cooking cannot be tolerated. Cooking and eating is a communal  effort. This is probably not as harsh as it sounds, especially if we kick out lazy people.  Think gardening , hunting,  snaring, etc, to feed, via food storage and cooking. All this contributes to higher morale and satisfactory health even during hard times.

            The chief cook is also responsible for periodically making soap and for all purposes (when we may run out) , to include cleaning ourselves and cooking and eating equipment (boiling water works well, also).

            The mayor will have a person to rely on whose focus is taking care of our refugees as best we can.

            Monitor the children services, like schooling, including lesson plans, and "keeping them busy". Support home school efforts. Children still have to be taught, and will benefit from education in so many ways that enhances their abilities and future happiness.

            Be in charge of one "dry eraser board" (there are many, and one goes to the "H2" for news and weather things. Hopefully the mayor assigns one (like control, location, and stuff on it) to the "school".   This may become a big deal because of various good demands to use them.

            Assign people to cut and stack wood for heat during the cold season and cooking year round. Do the same to stockpile prepared wood during the warm season. Think mechanical, like the old days, including the wood stoves. The tools are here, to include saws (one and two man), axes, and splitters, and sharpening tools and methods, hammers and nails, etc. This will be a major effort, I believe; that is cutting, splitting,  and stockpiling wood. Have the chief cook maintain the one large metal trash can for small cooking wood (and pine cones, etc.) collected from the yard and nearby areas. Available oil based fuel will eventually run out, so most of this effort will be manual.

            Remember we have a local high quality anthracite  coal seam also (it's about 18" thick), which can be mined for heat or cooking reasons. We have a book and the tools and the grates for using coal, which is different from using wood. A map of the location is in the infrastructure folder, and how to use coal is in one of the "if times get hard folders". I would suggest having one person mine the coal, while another person uses a line and bucket to lift it to the top of the bluff and return it to the compound to use. Basically, coal needs oxygen from below, and a hot fire to get going.

            Assign people to both work in the garden ( a reasonable time after frost planting time is after May 15th at the Hemlocks), and then put up the food for the cold season time.  In other words, plan ahead. The Hemlocks has many  books  about that (and some supplies, to include two canning pressure cookers, a boiling water canner, a food strainer,  and utensils and directions), to help the people who do it.  It is pretty much like a high school chemistry experience in my time. And it works. It is not rocket science. The final product is similar to the canned foods we see at the grocery.  And remember to label it.  Food is very important for health and morale.

            Assign a "Hemlocks Engineer" to maintain/understand the water, waste water, EMP and electric stuff (which is still often new in early 2012). For sure knowing about the operation of the electric plants (both water powered and solar powered) is a big deal, especially including maintenance of the plants, and even the smaller battery recharging schedules. The manuals to do so have been saved in the electrical folder, too.  This engineer reports to the " vice mayor" directly, and can help the preventive medicine effort a lot, also.  This is an important position.

             The suggested initial priorities are clean water, waste water, and then electricity. For electricity ensure knowledge of all fuses and spare parts, to include locations. Maintain the electricity book in the main house new room storage closet.

            Remember "chasing the sun" for the solar backup setup. There is an article on this in the electricity book. Now for "chasing the sun" for the solar setup, use the large utility cart to move the batteries and solar panels and converter around the yard 3 or 4 times a day to capture direct sunlight, and the portable internal frame white tent to park the setup out of rainy and snowy weather during the night time. Use the heavy duty extension cords to bring electricity into the main house.  Recharge batteries as required or on a schedule to be approved  by the mayor.

            Assign cooks, food cleaners, and house cleaners (the common areas). Use the many available containers, as needed.

            Assign alcohol brewers as needed, too. Alcohol consumption is historically a big deal to many Americans.

            Maintain facilities as best one can.  Mostly that means trying to keep people warm and dry, and better during the cold season. The intent is not to make things better, but also to preclude things from getting worse.  There are roof repair materials available, for example.

            Conduct health and sanitation inspections with the doc.  With the doc and H4 and the mayor, and once a quarter or more often,  expose all bedding to the sunshine (4 to 6 hours is a good goal). Also emphasize fire safety. Include checking on all the smoke and CO1 (carbon monoxide)  alarms using a map or notes to remember where they all are. Replace the batteries as necessary once a year using the rechargeable batteries.

            Schedule announced periodic drills, to include house fire, wild fire, tornado, security of the compound, security of the garden, and patrol back up (use the manual siren, too). It is suggested to do the rehearsals during daylight, and at least twice a year as a start. The Hemlocks has available a chuck wagon triangle, a cow bell, and a manual siren to use if desired.

            Maintain and control all Hemlocks equipment, including the bicycle, and the batteries, to include rechargeable batteries run off the local electric plants, with the DC/AC converters, too.

            Setup  a monthly barber and beauty service for health and sanitation and human preference reasons. Plan on using the electric barber set powered with solar power, converted from DC to AC on the fly, also.  Also plan on using scissors and a comb. Men are expected to grow beards, with a monthly trim if requested. There are not enough razors for daily cosmetic shaving.

            By the way, and best case, we can do OK up at the Hemlocks if need be.  It won't be a fun experience, but this is a good place to survive for a while (like more than one year), if need be. The key point is having the running water springs, and a waste water system, all gravity powered. That is a big advantage to staying alive during any time.

            Hemlocks vice mayor. The mayor needs help. All city type people positions and workers report to him/her, and he/she reports to the mayor.

            Everyone has to wash their own clothes and bedding on their own limited time. The Hemlocks has such gear (including two wringers) , plus they have to hang their clothes and bedding out to dry out  (such stuff is here). Plus they have to dump their own trash into the Hemlocks dump hole, to be burned by the H4 periodically. Just how we collect our trash after the plastic bags run out will depend on our ingenuity.

            Last, here are the underlying assumptions I am using on December 17, 2013.

                        A. Public electricity is lost (for whatever reason), and using the triage idea, Monterey and the Hemlocks may go one to three years without public electricity while the new transformers are both manufactured, transported, and installed; and other repairs are done.  I suspect  big cities will get a priority since that is what I would do. Hence a place like New York City  or Mumbai will do better, like go 1 to 4 months before public electricity is restored, and where most live (probably at much reduced populations). Cookeville or Crossville nearer to the Hemlocks may come back on like within a year or so. A place like the Hemlocks will probably be last. I plan on three years, worse case.

                        B. Best case, the Hemlocks will be making its own electricity, EMP and winter  and beaver proof to boot (I hope). In that idea, the place will make enough electricity to maybe power the small freezer, some lights so we don't have to live like Abraham Lincoln,  one LED security light to make trespassers and wildlife make a better target, and a rechargeable battery charger (we have a small solar one, too). Plus this design will include a " dump load" that may help heat the main house place during our cold season (it depends on the situation and weather and number of people here), and then dump the excess heat into the atmosphere during the warm season. The Hemlocks electrical engineer will do this, and the manuals to figure it out are in the main house new room closet. The main house also has a wood stove insert for heating in the front of the main cottage, and a second stove for the back of the main house. And the second cottage also  has two wood stoves, too. One is primitive and one is "modern".  The barn has a lot of room for a big tent (the Hemlocks has one camping type tent for 12 with some sleeping pads) that is here, too. Cold is one thing, but wet and cold is another less fun thing, so the barn overhead cover will work well when it is rainy and snowy. There is a third primitive wood stove available, too.  Just where it ends up will depend on the situation. Exhaust pipes and metal tape to go with it is also here.

                        C. Compared to the Nashville area, the Cumberland Plateau where the Hemlocks is, is a poorer place to garden and farm, mostly due to the acidic type soil. Many garden plants prefer a less acidic soil.  Hence plan ahead.  Other ancestors (including  local American Indians) have done this too (like gardened and farmed),  so vegetable gardens will grow OK, and have already grown OK at the Hemlocks, which has two nearby garden areas, too (already limed and fertilized), and like with full sun most of the day. Gardening tools are available, too. The Hemlocks has a seed vault, too. For example we can grow our own potatoes and tomatoes relatively easy, or so I expect. Plus there are some apple trees and one peach fruit tree and a simple blueberry patch.  Plus we have some grafting supplies, too.

                        D. Depending on the situation and circumstances and the amount of people at the time, most people will have multiple responsibilities, like normal. That will probably change (like responsibilities)  as people come and go. Imagine living on a ship as a good example. Keeping up with that is what the "H" type people and mayor do.

                        E.  Thanks to mother nature, we have plenty of clean spring water (mineral free, called "freestone" water), and even waste water treatment (like a septic tank and drain field), all  gravity powered. Now we are probably hurting on the food side of things  after a month or more (depending on how many people we have show up), which is a good problem to have. The food dilemma will depend on the season,  the number of people here, the food we grow, what we can live without, and what we can barter for. Also consider if a cold spell affects our growing season, and just what we will do (usually do to an abbreviated growing season). The 2d house kitchen also  has a water filter than can filter pond water for those that prefer that. It can support about 20 adults a day at a minimal level.

                        F. The wood stoves in both cottages are the main methods of cooking, boiling/heating water, heating water, heating ourselves,  heating our below floor pipes, etc. There are three Coleman camping ovens, and a Dutch oven than can be used, too. The wood stove insert in the main house has a small thermocouple fan (around a 150 cfm (cubic feet per minute)) and a magnetically held temperature gauge (old fashioned spring designed)  on it, too. An extra 100 cfm thermocouple fan will be next door, plus a third similar fan is in the back of the main house on the small cooking stove there.  The place  (the Hemlocks) is about a square mile in size, so there is plenty of wood to cut and burn. Much of it is already "seasoned", too.  Just use these stoves outdoors or use an exhaust pipe/chimney to keep the carbon monoxide killing problem away.  One "rocket stove"  would work well on the porch of the second cottage, for example, especially if we put in a green house there, too (again the gear to do so is here). Now for all small stoves, one has to collect the yard wood twice a day, kind of like the old Hemlocks' days. Back then, the yard wood would go into a box...now it goes into a large metal trash can  with a cover. Ole granny use to do the chore, now I (65 year old male) and the children will have to do it I imagine.

                        F(2). Cooling in the warm season is by use of windows and doors and maintaining the screens as best we can. Maintenance screens are here as long as they last.

                        G. People that come up here will bring extra ammo, and their prescription drugs and glasses, and sized shoes.  Right now the Hemlocks has a working 30-06 rifle, a 22 long rifle, a Japanese WWII Arisaka rifle,  plus four crossbows,  two air guns with a lot of air gun ammo, one sling shot, plus knives,  pepper spray, a cattle prod, two tasers, pepper spray,  and other similar things. If "guests"  don't bring more ammo, or guns, then we will suffer, but survive. Ammo for the sling shot, after the ball bearings run out, will be driveway and grounds pebbles. Targets for training are also here. Shooting ranges must have some kind of backdrop to "collect" training rounds. The backdrop can be natural. Shooters must still verify the safety of their ranges when being operated, like no mushroom pickers in active down range impact areas. Ammo should always be considered a valuable, limited, and irreplaceable asset. Dry fire should be used for "snap in" training as often as possible.

                        H. The local town grocery  and hardware stores will run out of all commodities within a few days (like three), and without electricity, all fuel supply  and phone and other services, to include emergency and medical and Internet,  will end. So will our refrigerator and frozen food sources. What we have is what is here, plus what we grow, and make, have stockpiled, and defend from other humans (and local critters will also probably invade our garden area, too).

                        I.  All huntable game will probably be hunted out within a year by local Monterey citizens. Then the use of snares (the Hemlocks has some), and patrols, will be a big deal. The Hemlocks also has 4 rat traps that can be used to catch squirrels, too. Plus there are 4 have-a-heart traps, also.  How to use and bait them will depend on the hunters' skills. Initially, expect some ratio like 10 trap tries to one successful trap. When we get good, the ratio might drop to 5 tries to one successful trap. I expect most snare animal food will be from rabbits. Plus we have many mouse traps, too.

                        J. Don't throw anything away casually. Even things like animal fat will have value in so many ways. Also old Mylar and zip lock used food bags will have value, as another example. Wood stove ashes can help make soap, for another example. Every grain of rice counts, too. Even use clean water to wash out containers that may have some food sill left in them.

                        K.  The main way to protect dry goods food stocks from wild animals like mice is by using the large plastic containers here at the Hemlocks in the main cottage.  Also the local small freezer (7.2 cu. ft.) serves the same function, but extends the shelf life of whatever is in it. There is an inventory list magnetically hanging on this freezer. Plan B is too use natural cooling which implies digging into to the local overhangs, and taking advantage of the constant 54 F temperatures. Now this usually means three things, also. One is protecting the cache from local critters, two is protecting the cache from  local stealing humans, and three is the 1/3 mile or more hike down and back to use this local 54 F refrigerator ( if we did it under the nearby cliffs).

                        L.  We may move some or all of the gardening effort closer to the compound for security reasons (both human and wildlife). Consider the near back yard and side yard, for example. It has been limed and fertilized once, already.

                        M. The four traditional water springs in July 2012 ran somewhere between 3,000 and 5,500 gallons per hour, estimated. We really don't know for sure, though. Now this is a drought estimate, and during rainy times, it will be better, like probably more like 5,000 to 7,200 gallons per hour.  Now springs depend on filtering, too; so build that delay into your calculations. Plus there is some surface runoff, too (for the top two springs), that helps fill the pond that helps make electricity, if it even rains or more likely have thunderstorms and periodic showers over this land. And are there other springs, too. Plus the Hemlocks has a Berkley water purifier, too. It is presently located in the kitchen in the house next door. It will make around 30 to 40 gallons a day of clean water, best case. That should work well for those who want clean pond (vice spring) water to drink and cook with. And remember, one can boil water, too; like to make it clean for humans to drink and cook with. In this case the water might be cloudy, but also clean enough to drink and cook with.

                        N.  Many females menstruate.  Females are half of all humans. The reusable and cleaning methods  to accommodate menstruation include natural sponges, manufactured pads, and existing  cotton and natural products, plus Oxyclean soaking methods to help the reusable methods. Old fashioned soap and water helps, too. Then later (worse case) we may have to go the American Indian route, like using the local Hemlocks moss. Disposal should be in pits, not the septic system. The intent is to protect the septic system from things it cannot "digest".

                        O.  People will have sex, and some females  will  get pregnant.  The Hemlocks can handle that.  In fact, having a midwife can be a barterable trade. Now preventive methods to getting pregnant  include condoms,  of which the Hemlocks has 100. The Hemlocks has no birth control pills or other stockpiled means. Keep in mind we all got here somehow, so life will go on, like babies getting made and growing up. Plus we should have midwifery abilities that will help, too.

                        P.  The dry erase boards have writing and erasing materials to use.

                        Q. Generally, all the structures at the Hemlocks are mostly wood, so they will probably burn quite quickly. Hence be ruthless about fire safety and prevention. At Groton Plantation where I use to work, the idea of "swept" yards still came over from Africa. Even children were often forbidden from maintaining fires in all hours of the day in share cropper houses. All this was a method of fire safety and protecting lives.

                        R. The hard maple trees and honey bee hives are assets (sugar and health mostly) we can use. They work already.

                        S. Children are assets to be used. And they must be integrated into the Community, as best we can. Plus they must be educated to at least the 3R level to enhance their future. I assume most will eventually leave to start their own Family, while some will bring in new people, too.  As always, it will depend on the situation.

                        T. I assume adult people can read. Mostly reading is for using all the reference books and articles here, plus for entertainment.  Dictionaries and a wiki widget are also available.

                        U. The emphasis is on reading, writing, and teaching people as need be. A much lower priority goes to the memory method of carrying on history, methods, and traditions. Usually this discussion is mostly about our children and how to best teach them.

                        V. I choose not to use farm type animals to help survive if times get hard. Rather I choose to use pre-stocked products, like powdered milk, to try do the same thing. Hence I have not already installed fencing and stockpiled animal feed, as an example, of what I have otherwise planned on. The Hemlocks does have limited fencing available, with fence posts coming from what we harvest.

                        W. I assume I can feed my yard dogs from scraps and animal offal.  If I am wrong, then they will move away, die off, or be eaten. Even Lewis and Clark ate 191 dogs they bought from the local Indians.

                        X. I assume between Family and Friends who can even make it up here, there might be as many as 21 adults and 24 kids, plus local overflow. Any less will degrade many of these ideas. Any more will ruin the best case situations we will probably face.

                        Y. I have personally washed and wrung out clothes (by hand) and dried them in the sun and wind, so I know one can do it, if they need to. I have even done it in the USA for one adult and four young men. I did not enjoy the effort and time it took, but I proved to myself I can do it if I need to.

                        Z. I assume if we have poor health and sanitation in the region, then pandemics will erupt, and will often affect me and my Family and friends; and especially the overload people arriving, uninvited and desperate, normally I also expect. Heck, it may even happen here.  And I don't discount the effect of Interstate 40 coming nearby. Even diseases like cholera and typhoid may come back. To boot, I assume many of the old fashioned and "natural remedies"  and methods will still probably still work OK. I also assume the idea of practicing preventive medicine as best I can, and giving priority to letting our bodies heal most sicknesses and injuries, with our medical help,  of course. Mostly that means keeping sick people warm and hydrated, as best we can.

                        Z(2).  I  know vegetable oil makes a good substitute (sometimes better) for mineral oil in so many applications, including lubrication and rust prevention.

                        Z(3)  I assume we will have refugees, who we will help as best we can. The mayor will have to figure out where they stay and how they heat (one primitive wood stove is potentially available) in the cold season. Safe fires are permitted. Refugees should not live in and among the accepted Family and Friends people. Spreading out has safety considerations, too.

                        Z(4) I assume the all the facilities will work. This includes the 3 bathtubs, and 4 toilets. I assume any losses due to fire we will make up for somehow. Hence be ruthless about fire safety as a first priority.

                        Z(5)  I assume most warm season bathing will use the local ponds. I assume most cold season bathing will be limited, and generally using cold water. I assume some may want to bathe using the 35 gallon metal wash tub, or baby wipes if available.

                        Z(6) I assume we will eventually run out of paper toilet paper and baby wipes, and go more primitive after that.

                        Z(7) I assume if burial markers run out, we will use local creek stones and even wood as markers for gravesites, with a map/diagram maintained by the religious lay leader.

                        Z(8) I assume the stockpiled paper, pens, and pencils will last if we are frugal about using them.

                        Z(9)  I assume if we have a civil war, political decisions will be individual. Said another way, I assume most at the Hemlocks will focus on the mission of survival and not the conflict.

                        Z(10) I assume that other situations (like a cul-de-sac in a city) may demand different and better solutions.

                        Z(11) I assume people that have to use "chamber pots" will do so. Chamber pots can be readily made from local and available materials and containers. Then one just dumps their chamber pot in the morning into a toilet hole or water toilet. This especially applies to the people manning the foxhole, who will provide their own "chamber pot" and take it with them at the end of their watch. Otherwise, the foxhole and area around it will become a health hazard eventually.  Plan B is to dig a big hole to use for toilet purposes in the vicinity of the foxhole. Plan C is a little bit of all solutions. Plan D is to use the one camping portable toilet. Whoever is on watch at 0900 has to dump the waste and return the camping portable toilet. In this case use some plastic bags if we have them, plus some kitty litter style things work OK, too.

                        Z(12)  There is no plan to stockpile oil based fuel, or animal feed products. Now there is minimal fencing and some chicken coops to do future animal farming, but they are  not used right now. Rather the Hemlocks has just stockpiled the products from animals, like powdered milk and eggs.  As to oil based fuel, when it runs out, it runs out. There is no stockpiled oil base fuel at the Hemlocks.

                        Z(13) There is plastic webbing way to protect the blackberry patch from humans and wild critters.

                        Z(14)  Charity will be practiced as best we can.