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Dear readers:
This can be part of the most important series of articles that I have ever written.
It consists of the full documentation of yet another part of our painful SHTF event brought along by the very same gang disguised as a political party that is exporting criminals to the Western world.
A person showed interest in knowing what our days look like from the time we get up till the time we go to bed, how it compares to “before,” what caused the differences, and how we have overcome the challenges.
Morning
I usually wake up within 6:30-7:30 AM. The morning light entering our dining room is pristine and makes me feel a kind of peace that I haven’t found anywhere else. Not when I was abroad, indeed.
I grind my coffee if I have some whole coffee beans, or if I don’t, then put a couple of spoons of the powdered stuff in my little Greek, induction-capable coffee maker. Lucky shot when I bought this: I didn’t know back then that this could be used with induction stoves. It makes me remember happier days in Isla Margarita, a great holiday destination for many Venezuelans back then.
Sometimes I check the news of a few selected places on my phone while the coffee is brewing, others I message my kid to see how he is getting ready for the day. Other times I instead prefer to read a few paragraphs of some books next to my easy chair, but as my close vision is not the same even with my reading glasses, other times I just sit in silence enjoying the peace and quiet of my house surroundings and praying for my kid to be safe and have a happy day.
It’s practically the only time of the day I have for myself, and I use it mostly to give thanks in silence for all my blessings. My parents are alive and healthy, with a few issues here and there, but they’re still active and functional. My kid is promptly becoming a great little man, sharing his thoughts and asking how things were when I was younger. These days he has been at home with me, the rest of the school year he is with Grampa and Grandma because school is cheaper there.
I usually take a couple of minutes to knead some dough for arepas or focaccia for breakfast.
At this point, I have already planned my day: what I’m going to write about, and where, and some other building, sketching, or the needed house/car/bike/generator fixing chore or some CNC carving. I am planning the lunch, and dinner, too.
Then I usually start writing, and when I get drained, I fool around on some social media or play a little. Kitchen timers are friendly devices I use all the time while cooking. Being in the kitchen at temps over 30°C or 85F quickly gets uncomfortable, so I´d rather be in my bedroom, where I have temporarily installed the AC until things get better, and after fixing the larger AC and the roof leaks in my home, “office.” The CNC equipment needs an environment as cool as possible. It has worked flawlessly even in 32-34°C but it’s not good.
And the heat is not good for the indispensable workshop large vacuum, either. When I’m doing other chores away from the AC or out of the house, my kiddo plays or watches some videos. I’m well impressed with how the house floors stay clean and tidy when you adopt the healthy habit of leaving footwear on the door and using slippers. I’ve been sweeping daily and gradually getting less and less dust out of the home and the inter-daily mopping is much easier every time, also.
I have taken my time to teach my kid about some not-so-usual activities. For instance, like replacing the spring coil in our generator manual starter device. As it didn’t start, we are going to the next step up: essential generator maintenance and tune-up until it starts with the slightest pull of the rope.
The main changes we’re experiencing after the election
Regarding the main changes, after the recent violent events where the situation has been increasingly tense, I try not to leave home a lot. Only to get the essentials and come back quickly. Things in the city seem peaceful, but I’m not taking any chances. In the subdivision group I am subscribed to, I’ve received warnings from some neighbors that there are agents (yep, even in a gated 200 families neighborhood there are snitches) watching and capturing screens of everything we chat about.
Knowing the degree of organization the foreign invaders have (this is nothing new, they’ve been here since Hugo was alive) I stopped making any comments and posting only to sell old kiddo’s toys and some other things. Even sending private messages to others with information is risky.
The worst is the effect of political uncertainty on the economy. If it weren’t for these articles and a very needed sponsoring that readers provide from time to time, we would be having it much harder. Every time I try to start with the CNC carving business, something major happens. I know this would be a good income in a normal country, and it’s frustrating to see how everything goes to H when I am barely starting up.
My ways of dealing with all this incredibly mind-wearing stress and the necessities are mostly listening to relaxing music, getting the most out of our meager meals, and being creative. I have a lot of pictures I would like to carve for sale, so I process them and run the simulator to see how they would look. Other tasks I do to keep my mind busy include improving my home within my limited means, cleaning and keeping everything as tidy as possible, and planning what to do to make my habitat more livable and cozy. I try to limit my news consumption to a few reliable sources I have already identified through the years of following serious Venezuelan journalists in exile. I don’t view too much of this because it is too stressful. I try to keep a positive approach, posting funny pictures and reels.
One of the changes with the most impact has been dinner. I try to eat enough at lunch and a good breakfast, to have only a light dinner. Before all this, our family dinner was a good one, including some broth, main dish, and dessert.
Driving
Regarding travel by car, yes, it is possible as long as you have fuel. Fuel price is 0.50$ per liter, almost 2$ a US gallon. That may not sound like much but when you contrast it with our meager incomes, it’s a great deal.
Roadblocks are widespread, but mostly in the major cities. In the first weeks, they supposedly checked the cellphones, looking for “traitors” to the homeland” (meaning everyone who doesn’t want the bus driver as president anymore). We will have to make a road trip and I already arranged with a friend to take a ride (on a truck) instead of using public transport. It’s going to last like 13 hours instead of only 7, but it is what it is.
There is gas, but it is scarce, and you see long lines…in a former oil-producing country. Go figure. But it’s all about societal control for them.
Food supply has been steady, except for the first couple of weeks after July 28th (election day).
How do you find others who share your views?
A question that now is gaining specific weight under the current status quo:
“How easy is it to spot like-minded souls? Can you tell by looking who is going to rat you out?”
Finding like-minded souls is rare down here. South Americans (generally speaking) are not preventive. The vast majority act emotionally and in a reactive manner. Having a well-stocked pantry is something that is, for the most poor people, seen as an insult to them. Like “something that only the rich can do.”
In the worst of the rationing, there were people selling out others, accusing them of “hoarding”. These hoarders, in truth, were only smugglers trying to make money, taking advantage of the situation. I know there were many uniformed guys doing the same. Thus, they had the “authority” to get rid of the competition in the smuggling arena.
I have never found anyone sharing my same approach. It’s a lonely life sometimes.
As I have been living here for more than 20 years, I can say that we all know the dangerous people. However, our interaction is mostly on social media. But we all know who the operators of the repression system are by now. As I mentioned in previous articles, there are black SUVs and pickup trucks roaming randomly on our streets, with pitch-black tinted windows and no license plates, part of the terrorist psyops they are inflicting. The world must be aware of this.
Incredibly, sometimes while these vehicles are roaming the streets, there are aggressive and sadistic crime events like an elderly lady receiving cuts (25 stitches) with a blade from two guys on a motorcycle, for instance.
Getting work
Regarding current events, there is something like a tense climate everywhere. People try to relax, but the ones with a job or a business and money in their pockets seem to be the happiest and most careless about what will happen to the country. For them, life goes on.
For us without fixed income, facing job loss, and seeing our meager savings disappear, desperation slowly builds up. And I am very sorry to inform you that I am included.
I have applied even for jobs that are way below my skill and competence, like warehouse watchman, security staff, and taxi driver, but it seems nothing of this is destined to consolidate. I’ve been analyzing the possibility of renting two rooms I have empty, but I have my concerns about that, too.
In the subdivision, many neighbors have started to sell groceries with door-to-door delivery: cheese and eggs directly from the producer, ice creams, sweets, burgers, hotdogs, fries, and others began to sell brand new clothes and shoes. With my freezer and generator, I will soon try to do my best: ice-cold beverages and mixtures for fruit smoothies, for example. I have the feeling that there will be another colossal power blackout, and this time I will be in the middle of it, in uncomfortable weather and very far from my family. Mind you, during the 2019 blackout, I was in Peru, but my son was with me, and my dad had some precautions already, like 12v fans and light bulbs.
I can almost feel the tic-tock of that clock, and it is pretty hard to know that without money, it is very hard to prep against it. Even a used car battery is going to make an impact on your pocket if you are tight on the budget.
One thing is for sure.
I don’t believe I am fit to adventure abroad again in some other country in SA.
But that is some material for the next article!
Please leave your comments below, and let me know your thoughts!
Your moral support has been so important that you wouldn’t believe it.
Thank you very much for that.
Stay safe, and keep tuned.
J.
About Jose
Jose is an upper middle class professional. He is a former worker of the oil state company with a Bachelor’s degree from one of the best national Universities. He has an old but in good shape SUV, a good 150 square meters house in a nice neighborhood, in a small but (formerly) prosperous city with two middle size malls. Jose is a prepper and shares his eyewitness accounts and survival stories from the collapse of his beloved Venezuela. Jose and his younger kid are currently back in Venezuela, after the intention of setting up a new life in another country didn’t go well. The SARSCOV2 re-shaped the labor market and South American economy so he decided to give it a try to homestead in the mountains, and make a living as best as possible. But this time in his own land, and surrounded by family, friends and acquaintances, with all the gear and equipment collected, as the initial plan was.
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