Out of the Frying Pan and Into the Fire

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It was about three weeks when I started to see light through the rubble. I set it up so that I'd be able to break through in the morning. I don't know how well the zombies can see, but I know I'm better in the light....

I peered through the rubble into the morning light. It probably would've hurt my eyes if I hadn't held off waiting for the right moment. Consequently, it had been about five days of pretty bright light through the debris. I didn't know what to expect, but what I saw didn't surprise me. There on the sidewalk two zombies were shuffling along. I didn't make any noise and they didn't see me. I wasn't really out of my hole yet. I saw another one way to my right. He must have been a construction worker as he had the garb. It didn't look like he'd be able to make me if I was careful.

I slowly crawled out of the rubble and adjusted to my settings. I was in a collapsed building, but perhaps at the edge, as the building across the street seemed relatively untouched. I wasn't sure which direction to go. Then I heard the noise behind me. The construction zombie had moved closer and saw me. He moved to grab me, but I was quicker. I used a piece of re-bar to slam him behind the knees and buckling him over. He moaned and called out. His calls alerted another construction worker and police zombie a bit further behind. The moved my direction. I sprang into action and skated down the rubble, making sure to bring my re-bar club with me. Alas, these were not slow shuffling zombies, as they picked up speed quickly to follow. I went straight across the street for an alley. It seemed I could outpace them for the moment.

I burst out of the alley onto the other side and my stock did not improve. It was a busy street filled with them. One was right next to me reaching out and moaning. He must have been a banker or something before he turned. Still a quick slap to the side of the head with my re-bar and he was out of commission. But again, not great as the commotion alerted everyone on the street. Most of the zombies just stood there but a small group approached. I waved my re-bar to fend them off. It seemed to work for a moment, but then I realized my folly as I was jolted from behind. My world went black......

Just Use a Montage

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My immediate needs of food and water being met I was free to think about some solutions to being stuck underground in a collapsed building. Knowing which way was up helped. I reasoned that digging up and at an angle would give me the best chance to survive a collapse as I wouldn't be down as deep with every foot I moved up. It was slow-going, and even worse since I decided to be smart about it. I dug my hole at about a forty degree angle. I tried to maintain about a three-foot opening which I braced and packed as I went with Re-bar and cement chunks. I was able to go a few feet a day this way. I had been doing it a week and had gotten about twenty feet. I was relying on mice and pools of water for sustenance. I didn't eat the rats. They tend to carry more disease. And so it went on. I slept, ate mice, drank stagnant water, dug and reinforced my tunnel. I've been doing just this for about two weeks now. These are the parts that they usually use a montage in a movie to fast-forward through. But I didn't have any music.

Mouseketeer

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There were a few things I needed to identify. The first was if I could find out which direction to dig. The second was if there was any way to collect food and water. The third was if there was any way for me to stay sane.

The direction thing took care of itself. I could tell night and day by the temperature and that things were just a little bit not so pitch black during the day. In the morning, I could see the light creep in just a little bit more than the rest of the day. I surmised that the path of least resistance was East. So when I started digging, it was at an angle up and to the East. I used my hands to move gravel and debris. I used a piece of re-bar to loosen debris and shift things. I used a big piece of angle-iron to pry when necessary.

The water I was worried about. I didn't have any, and there wasn't even the slightest bit of moisture in my cavern. The floor seemed to be cement that was slightly at an angle with the low-side in the Northeast. That was good for digging because my debris slid down the angle pretty well. However, that didn't help my water situation. I knew I could survive for about six days without water, and those last two days would pretty much be the worst thing ever. I went to sleep the first night and was at a bit of a loss. When I woke the next morning the solution was at hand. I mean that quite literally as there was a mouse nibbling on my shoe. I tried to hit it with my re-bar and missed. I got it the fifth time. I was so hungry and thirsty that it was delicious. I didn't even skip a beat. I just ate it and was done with it. These are the moments in a zombie apocalypse that they don't show you in the movies. My biggest threats were not zombies, but dying of hunger or thirst. There seemed to be enough mice around that I could catch a couple a day. I was still pretty thirsty but about three days in, it rained. I managed to gather together some scraps that held water in small pools. it wasn't anything great, or big, but it was a start. I'd say I had maybe two gallons of water divided up in about fifteen different pools. So for the time being, food and water was taken care of. Not ideal, but far from dying from hunger or thirst.

Silence is Golden. Except when you're starving, thirsty, and bored.

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I had some time on my hands. It was dark. Very dark. The cavern I was in was about 20 feet around. It was maybe six feet high. There were a few girders than held it up in spots. It didn't really seem to shift much, if at all, so for the immediate time being, a cave-in didn't seem likely. After my eyes adjusted, I could just barely see. There wasn't any water or food. That was going to be a problem. There seemed to be air, so that was a plus. I felt my way around the area. There also didn't seem to be any zombies. For the moment, at least. But as I was stuck in, I suppose they were stuck out. For the moment, at least.

Things always seem the darkest before they go pitch black.

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After the collapse, everyone split up and did ridiculous things. They were exploring and seemed to get picked off. We found some provisions. To make a long story short, I had to fun for it. I got around a corner, wedged a pipe in the rubble and then everything collapsed where I had come from. So now I'm in the dark. I don't have anything to eat, or drink, or defend myself. I know there are zombies around, though none seem to be with me in this now quite small cavern. I would describe my situation as "not great".

Ignornance Isn't Always Bliss

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I'd first like to apologize for not checking in for a few weeks. When the building I was in caved in, we didn't know what was going on. Frankly, we still don't. Well, I guess I don't. I'm the only one left since the building caved in and we got trapped. Since then, the other five have been picked off by the undead. Mostly from doing stupid things.

I still haven't found out what's going on or been able to get outside. I feel like I'm close. Of course maybe I'm the only one left on earth. That seems unlikely, but if it's true, damn you all for not paying attention to my blog when I made regular posts about surviving zombies. The people I was with sure didn't. That's for sure.

Compressed Air, Your Lo-Tech Friend

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While we're on the topic of renewable energy, I'd like to segue into a little rant about compressed air. Don't forget what you already know! Compressed air is an incredible renewable resource. Compressed air guns can kill, and though you normally get one shot, that one shot doesn't have the bang of a normal gun. And you can charge the air container with a bike pump. Do you know what else you can charge an air tank with? A windmill. There are some farmers in the Midwest who use windmills to charge compressed air tanks. They then use that air to run water pumps in locations too remote for electricity. So chew on that little chunk of ingenuity for a bit. I'm not saying it's genius, okay, actually, I am, but my point is, in a post reliable-electricity world, compressed air has a whole bunch of reasonable applications. So strap on your stupid. If you think about it, you already know a ton of things you can do with compressed air.