Death comes for us all

The shit storm of Haiti has me rethinking my age old fascination with disaster preparations. As all children of the cold war the end was always nearly apon us according to the media. Not the boring end of world but the fancy fireball from the sky hand of god smiting kind. Let's face it gradual global tempture increase and national debt stripping a lifestyle into grinding poverty and early death hardly makes for epic heroics and silver bullet solutions.

Fascination would be the best description not a lot of real preparations. I was a teenage boy in a small town in the mountains when the film RED DAWN came out. Me and my friends endless discussed our plans and rendez-vous points. I being a bit more serious than the rest actually bought box of 00 buckshot for my singleshot shotgun, and everytime I bought .22 ammo would buy 100rds shoot 75 and keep the balance as a stockpile.

It was of course a different time and place. A 14year old boy could walk into a hardware store and buy ammo off the shelf. The .22 ammo was never a problem and when I went to purchase the 12ga. the shop owner looked me straight in the eye and asked "You NOT poaching are you?"
"No Sir. " I replied, "I just thought it would be good to have around, just in case." This response resulted in an approving nod and no other questions.

To digress for a moment this brings to mind an even earlier memory. I was in grade 3, which would have made me 9 or 10 I think, the teacher received a box sealed with tape. She turned to the boy sitting closest to the door and asked to borrow his knife. He said that he didn't have one. The teacher was shocked then asked everyone who had a knife to hold up their hand. 3/4 of the boys and a few of the girls raised their hands. First she borrowed a knife and over the course of unpacking berated the little boys who didn't have a knife. She believed that every little boy should have a pocket knife. I have taken it a step further and I believe everyone should have a pocket knife including little girls.