25. Operation Stone's Throw

13/11/08

No one came today and we didn't hear any helicopters. The phones don't work. They didn't mention us on the radio. How can you evacuate and seal off an entire village and not make headline news? I guess it all happened when the elections were in full flow and the story got buried - perhaps we missed the one mention. We'll keep listening; part of the communications plan we started today.

• Check the phones every morning and every night.
• Keep the radio on whenever we're in.
• Create big signs on the ground for air traffic to spot.
• Find a CB or transmitter.
• Build a fire.
• Ring the church bell everyday.
  
• Perimeter Patrol and 'Operation Stone's Throw'.

The first 2 are fine - we did those!

Big signs? We couldn't agree where or how and to be honest, I don't think we were in the mood today. Hopefully tomorrow we'll feel driven enough to get out there in the rain and set something up.

Transmitters - I'm not ready to go into people's houses. It feels wrong. B. says that's stupid - but I think he'll hold on a couple of days. It would be really embarrassing to admit to going through everyone's stuff after just 2 days of awaiting rescue.

Fire - If we don't do the signs tomorrow, we'll build a fire. Probably.

Church Bell - We did that and it was wicked!! The church was open. I'd like to say it was 'strangely comforting' but it wasn't. It was really cold and the human touches - the hymn books, the sunday school display, the 'flower' rota - really brought our desertion home. They say that the Church is the people, not the building, and now I know it's true. Anyway, we went straight to the bell tower (we didn't climb up - there's a hatch, but we're going to need a ladder to get up there) and we both picked a rope. It takes some power to get the bells moving, but once you do, wow, the sound is phenomenal. Cacophonal actually - and that's what we wanted.

Perimeter Patrol - We've agreed that we'll do this everyday, no matter what. We walk the full length of the wall - from the time it takes us to do it, I think it must be about 6 miles. As we walk, we run a stick along it (like a child enjoying the noise along railings). The surface of the wall is like the side of one of those... I think they're called containers... that carry cargo on trains and the backs of lorries. Ridged. And when you run a heavy stick over it it sets a deep, resonant clanging. We take 4 notes on rocks with us - one for each of the points where the wall crosses a road. We decided that was where check points were most likely to be set up and where people were most likely to chance upon the wall. East, where we first encountered the wall as it crosses the main road. North and South, both really quiet back roads. And West - the other end of the main road and the furthest out of the village, as the wall reaches out to include the 'Family Farm', "Where Daisy and her friends are waiting to meet you!"

I've just thought. We checked the houses, but we never checked the farm. Just skirted round it with the wall. Are the animals still there trapped in the barns?
That's the routine out tomorrow morning - we have to go and check. If they are there and they are alive, they'll be barely alive. How long has it been? 2 weeks since it all started? How long since everyone left? How long can animals survive in a barn?

I'm feeling quite wound up about this. I have to go talk to B.