Voicelessness and Emotional Survival > Voicelessness and Emotional Survival Message Board
Captain's Log - 2024
Hopalong:
So very very good to hear that B's situation has been restarted and is moving in a much better direction. Iow, WOO HOO! Poor man deserves the consideration and thank god for that 3rd doctor who actually cared about his pain. Some medicos are surviving the attacks from certain directions on medical among other professionals.
That's just really good news; ethics do survive.
The higher mountain communities are SO cut off right now in WNC. I'm wrung by the elderly who live solo, or the disabled, etc. Strong people with resources may find sunshine soon, but having lived and worked in Appalachia (KY), I struggle to believe those folks in more isolated hollers in WNC will not suffer double what any city or near-affected-city dwellers have yet to go through.
It's a sad, sad thing. And more sadly, there will be more. We're (cultural "we") just not ready for the consequences of our consuming priorities, decisions, ignorance, greed, entitlement and apathy.
Chins up, I hope--
Hops
sKePTiKal:
From what I'm gleaning, I see a whole lot of healthy defiance to the message that people should just give up and become dependent on charity for the rest of their lives. Yeah, survival without modern conveniences is a lot of hard manual labor. Absolutely a fact.
But that's where the "neighbors helping neighbors" culture kicks in and everyone benefits. It's one reason I was mostly comfortable in the south. Same thing is true in Amish/Mennonite communities. I'm sure the Mennonite missions have already dropped & shipped their donations. Walmart sent over 40 truckloads into the area; Dolly Parton, Elon Musk, Trump & others are giving huge monetary contributions and free starlink dishes for communications.
But what people DON'T quite accept yet, is that a very large percentage of the numbers "missing" are likely dead, from the initial storm and that many of the bodies will not be found for a long time (and may not be identifiable). Not a lot of media attention on that right now, which is probably a good thing to keep people's morale up.
I do see a LOT of farm/homesteaders channels from the area assessing damage and livestock impacts; there are SOME, but nothing terribly dangerous or significant enough to bankrupt them. People who live this way do have generators to keep lights on and food cold; they have solar power backups (or other means) to run well pumps; they have septic tanks... so the sanitary situation is better than in suburban or city communities.
Fingers crossed they'll finally reach some more isolated places and find people "making do" with what they have.
lighter:
Hi, Hops. Things feel pretty surreal in WNC right now. When I left the first time it felt like passing through a membrane between safe and unsafe. Cash only transactions reminding me zero lines at gas pumps and grocery stores shouldn't let me feeeel all is well.....bc it's not. Won't be for a long time, if ever. It's bigger than anyone can wrap their mind around. So much destruction, devastation and loss.
When we come together around meals.... it's common for everyone to share something difficult to process. Usually one story from the news....fast water rescues are particularly scary. And mudslides.
We're just 4 in the lake house now. Should be 7 next week.
Another hummingbird just buzzed in....got chased away by the chirping green female. I need to refill the bird feeder with seed.
Our guests stayed downstairs recently....a break allowing my girls/me and the new bf to interact privately..... we're just meeting this "new boy.". BF is funny, polite, helpful and wants to be liked and approved of. So far, so good. Yesterday morning he and DD24 cleaned breakfast dishes, dropped pug at vet and took garbage to transfer station on way out of town....very helpful.
I think services will be restored in our area soon .....the downed trees and power lines were the worst of it.
I'll be looking to bring back more clothing items this next trip.
I've heard pack miles are bringing help to more cut off areas. The private choppers are delivering to fire stations. I know neighbors are banning together and 2 of my friends are delivering supplies to elderly and handicapped individuals 7 hours a day for Beloved charity.
Amber: Glad to read progress on B's medical situation. Finding a healthcare caring/competent professional willing to become upset on B's behalf will change trajectory, it's hoped. I'll pray it does.
Lighter
Twoapenny:
Skep, I'm very, very glad to read that 'someone' has finally employed a bit of common sense where B's healthcare is concerned and got things moving. I hope there is some momentum now and some way of finding a workable way forward that is manageable for him and might mean not having these constant battles to deal with. Very sorry that the family home was destroyed, though, and hope all their loved ones are accounted for x
sKePTiKal:
B spoke with his sister (in Black Mountain). It's NOT true family place was levelled; it still stands. Sis's house has 1 tree down. And people there are doing what they've always done: working together to make it better for everyone.
Lighter, I suggest you pack some sweaters and jackets; temps are supposed to turn chilly - especially in the evenings.
Tupp, We're hoping things are moving in the right direction expeditiously. Hopefully, this works afterwards to minimize the number of days he feels like he was beaten with an axe handle. This morning, it's a headache. After he's had enough coffee to get his brain in gear, I'll hand him a shot of nerve tonic and feverfew tea. He did take one of the oral painkillers yesterday - at noon; is waiting for noon to take another. We're throwing everything we can at keeping him functional. But he's ALSO got to realize that at 67, he really can't expect to do as much as fast as he did at 40. Sure, push to keep doing what you can... but also accept that some days, you just CAN'T.
When I have energy, I hit my priorities and anything lightweight, extra I can manage. Some days I'm just drained and accept that i have to rest. We ran everyday last week with parts pickups and appt. and shopping. That wears me out. But Debbie's coming for a long weekend (birthday weekend, too!) so, freshen up the guest room and tidy the studio time. Set up & prep meals. My work cabinets might finally get delivered next week, or weekend too. Then we can finally start arranging that room.
Hol worked 5 days last week, covering for a vacation. Her new BF has kind of disappointed her, by bringing his own emotional work to her house and dumping it on her; accusing/blaming her for things that she's not responsible for. So, she's hit the rutabaga stage of veggie-hood too. They've been talking about that; talking it through. So, it's still a workable situation. So far. I'm seeing a whole lot of "applied learning" from Hol right now, in that she learned some huge lessons dealing with S and those lessons are being put to use now. She's enjoying new job but it's also cutting into how much she can do around here... and she may not really like that in the long run. So, improvise, adapt & adjust going on forward, one foot at a time.
Speaking of which, I need to start motivating a bit more this morning. Baby kitties need more food and a box cleanup and I need to work in Debbie's room this morning; back to studio this afternoon - maybe burn cardboard this afternoon. We've found a no kill shelter for the kitties and I'll feel comfortable with their condition next week. Little buggers are full of piss & vinegar and my 5x6 bathroom is a bit small of a space for them to tire themselves out. I tried expanding that to the bedroom - but I won't do that again. Getting up & down off the floor is exhausting.
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