I saw a story on world net daily the other day by mike hyatt, saying everyone should do a test on y2k prep, like he said talking about it and doing it are 2 different things. My husband and I have gone through y2k early... he did not have a job neither of us could get one for months and months . Since last feburary to be specific. We made it for awhile sold unnecessay stuff. Then in August of this year it came to the nitty gritty, anyway we gave back our house instead of going to court but were on the street so to speak, my husbands mother had a place in the mt.s and said we could move there, we checked it out and was very much better than under a bridge. Her place was furnished, we sold what we could of our stuff, packed up what we could, I had to board my son out with my daughter but in the wilderness he would have had to home school and he would.ve hated it. I cried alot in those days we left alot of things I would have liked to have brought but we were a one trip trailer and what we could not sell we left or gave away...when we got here too the mts. we had enough money to get a tank of water(1200 gals.) a couple tanks of gas and the internet. We got the internet only because my husbands mom was nice enough to get electric and phone turned on but no radio or tv so we hooked up the net too keep contact. When we got here and got water we turned it on to the house and it leaked all over, no one had been here for years...so our days of hauling water began..we hauled water from the tank for 2 months to flush the commode to wash the dishes to bathe... if it was warm enough we took showers under the tank"petticoatjuction" style but usually i did a sponge in the sink. and I hated it and my husband told me that maybe god was preping us for what was to come.And i always told him well it ain't come yet ,just to be argumental, but I do know, it came to us sooner than it did to most. We have saved food(o'my god ahoarder) but in the last few months has came in handy. Only thing we lacked of has been crackers and a nice green salad, and a hot shower . But I tell myself when I heat the water to do dishes everyday that it could be worse, we could not have electricity and I would have to build a fire outside.. Well what i have learned, washing machines take alot of water, try hauling it.... you use less water when you got to haul it..and thank God for electricity...but I am ready to not have that now too. My husband is working now has a good wilderness job is an electricians helper(lol) so suppose it is good till Jan at least, slowing getting things fixed in the house, got a hot shower now... but want you all too know... water is the most important thing if you got the resourses to get a well get one... between the 2 of us just hauling water i figure we use about 10 gals a day per person and if y2k goes on or is real bad we will run out . Hope some one likes this and I don't get to much hate mail... I am sensitive. Sandy

-- sandy (rstyee@overland.net), November 16, 1999

Answers

Sandy, What an inspiring story. Thank you so much for sharing it. I have a well and a stream and will also have to haul water if the electricity goes out. My well is all electric and I couldn't afford a deep well pump so I bought a well bucket attached to rope. The stream is a bit far but workable. I think that everytime I will haul water post Y2K I will think of you. If you can do it....

-- Debi (LongTimeLurker@shy.com), November 16, 1999.

Thank you Sandy! I sincerely hope that all goes well with your family. When it comes down to it, you really can strip away most of the things we call "necessities" and find that much less is required for the basics of life. Your courage inspires the rest of us.

May God bless you and yours

-- James Chancellor, PE. (publicworks1@bluebonnet.net), November 16, 1999.

From: Y2K, ` la Carte by Dancr (pic), near Monterey, California

Hopefully, you can get your kids up there with you real soon, now.

-- Dancr (addy.available@my.webpage), November 17, 1999.

Your story has touched me. May I offer my heartfelt regards for your determination.

The closest that I have come is to spend a week in a replica 10th century village in early March as the guest of a group who live there year round. They warned us how hard it would be, but we didn't believe them. For the first few days it was fun and different. Then it became tiring. Then tiresome. By the end of the week, the guests were bickering over who's turn it was to chop wood or (shudder) work the mill, or (shudder, shudder) haul water from the stream.

I don't ever, ever want to live like that again.

-- Colin MacDonald (roborogerborg@yahoo.com), November 17, 1999.

Sandy,

I can relate to your experience. My wife and I lived in a cabin in north Idaho for 4 years without electricity or running water. Had propane lights & fridge, but had to haul the water from a town 30 miles away in plastic tanks. Sometimes, we had to park our truck at the county road to walk the 2 1/2 miles into our place during the winter, pulling supplies on a sled. Took spit baths, midnight trips to the outhouse, read a lot of books, hauled a lot of firewood. But we survived, and it is all a pleasant memory now. Biggest day back then is when we got a phone!

Now, we have a hand pump well next to the house on our new place. You're right, water is everything.

jw

-- j werner (jwerner15@hotmail.com), November 17, 1999.

I can relate Sandy. I came from nothin', less than nothin' even. aised in the backwoods and bayous of Lowzy-ana. For a number of years we used a 'two-holer' outhouse, raised water with a well bucket, and raised our own food. We wuz real po folks. If not for the homestead exemption for land taxes, we would have lost the property. I'm with Colin, I don't ever want to live that way again, but the experience which assures you that you CAN do it if necessary is invaluable. regardless of what happens with Y2K, this time you are going through is a precious experience that will only appreciate in value as the years go by.

Many blessings,

Kookster

-- Y2Kook (Y2Kook@usa.net), November 17, 1999.

Y2K Kook: Might I suggest that "poor" is a state of mind, and the definition of that word is dependent upon what your society's opinion of the inverse, "rich" is. Obviously we are talking about material things here....I, too, came from nothing. I think it tends to make you really really appreciate the things you do get in life.

Granted, doing without is extremely hard. I know. I cried the day I sold my beautiful 100 yr old violin, which had been appraised at $1000, for $300 just to pay to keep the water running and the lights on. I have pawned my wedding ring just to buy groceries (my husband had decided he had been all he could be and got out of the Army and found it difficult to find a decent paying job in the little town in Alabama we were living in at the time...). I have sold aluminum cans just to scrape up enough for diapers (I know, coulda used cloth, but I was pretty clueless back then).

I guess most people feel so safe and secure in their big homes and it amazes me how it never occurs to them how very quickly it can all go away. I think our cushy convenience-driven society gives us a false sense of security.

-- preparing (preparing@home.com), November 17, 1999.

Just got through hauling water this morning, and it did not bug me...thank you all for all the wonderful posts, some of your stories are so much more inspiring than mine. It is nice to know that there are people out there that truly know what hard times are though, and they don't happen just because you are stupid or lazy, etc. I have an older sister whom hardtimes is having to sell her jewelry or the Rolex, I worry about the people like her if times get real hard, if money don't work and the lights don't come on they will be lost. she once told me that all the hard times I have been through in my life(and still continue to go through) have given me character, I like to think though that my character was already there and all the hard times have given me are wisdom and stamina. God be with you all in the months ahead and may you all have wisdom and stamina. Sandy

-- Sandy (rstyree@overland.net), November 17, 1999.