Lists

TIME TO STRATEGY EXECUTION: 105 DAYS

“Treat the outdoors as you would your home, because it ultimately is.”

I must have read that sentence twenty times before I got its meaning. What we think of as our homes are really part of everything else, like rooms in a larger home. The statement dovetailed with the next one in Sanda’s second list:

“Use only what others can use, and for only as long as you need it, because nothing is ever truly owned.”

That home is everyone’s home, along with everything in it.

Sanda had spelled out the most basic rules for survival along with understandable reasons for them. This particular list dealt with things in their general sense, and when generally applied it would embody the Precautionary Principle: colloquially, “Better to be safe than sorry.”

I spent much of Friday and the weekend studying all ten lists, which had a total of 125 rules. There were several ways that they could be grouped, most of them obvious once the rationale was understood. Contrary to what Caleb Tosner said on Thursday, I suspected that they were not gibberish but rather a means for constructing what someone would need to know in order to construct and survive in a reality with much less of an extinction threat.

Sanda had done most of the hard work before her/its essence was ripped away by saboteurs as-yet unknown. My help was requested for a reason that was starting to become clear based on our interactions before the crash. Essentially, I was expected to convince others of its value and put it in a form they might better appreciate.

I shared that insight with Maura Riddick, who nodded approvingly when I was done. She summarized her takeaway: “Sanda completed her mission as she came to finally understand it, and probably didn’t understand why her customers didn’t agree. You were one person she knew would understand.”

“I’d like to help finish what she started,” I offered, “and still be able to share my observations with the public.”

“Of course,” Riddick said. “Arrangements are already being made, and I’d like to work with you on it.”

I agreed. “The test team and their resources would be very helpful, especially those test towns Caleb told me about.” I had already learned that one of the towns was only a few hours’ drive away, and was looking forward to setting up my own tests.

Reality Check

Making it up as I go. This should be fun.