On the Death of a Sock

So just this morning - really, just before I sat down to begin writing this (though who knows when I'll finish!) - I threw away a pair of socks. The one had a little hole that my big toe pushes through and gets stuck in, making the hole worse each time I wear that pair of socks.

I'm not particularly fond of those socks. They're comfortable and a nice shade of dusty pink, but they're just socks. But as I walked them over to the trash can, I couldn't get the phrase "Ending is better than mending... ending is better than mending..." out of my head. And I can't tell you how much that creeps me out.

Perhaps this is because we've started our unit on dystopian literature and I've re-read the booklist plus a number of other related novels and stories. I actually haven't been able to finish Edward Bellamy's Looking Backward because when I start reading his sparkling ideas about the (then) future, I get horribly disheartened.

I am completely dependent upon others for food, water, clothing, shelter, health services, information and energy. And as I do not share Mr. Bellamy's rosy view of the future, this makes me a little uncomfortable. I have placed myself in a position that requires me to trust people about whom I know very little.

On the other hand, it shouldn't be too terribly difficult to prepare for self-sufficiency if the need should arise. Here is what I would need to do:

- Pay off all debt.
- Learn to build with cob; test soil.
- Learn to install and repair electrical systems and plumbing.
- Plant and maintain a vegetable garden.
- Learn to weave and sew with non-electrical equipment.
- Learn butchering.
- Obtain and learn to shoot well with rifle, handgun, and bow.
- Dig a cellar and set a foundation for the cob house.
- Obtain and install solar panels and a Franklin stove.
- Build water collection and purification systems.
- Build and secure a fence around the property.
- Raise guineas.
- Store materials: sand/straw, solar panels, canned food and some extra can openers, batteries, candles, matches, vitamins, medicine & first aid supplies, soap, and ammunition.

Ain't no zombie apocalypse gonna take ME out...