Percy's Mission

by Jerry D. Young

  “I think so. We could get rain tonight.”

  Nan grinned over at Calvin. “You just want to look at everything again.”

  Calvin smiled back. “Well… maybe.”

  They unloaded the Rokon, trailer, and log skid from the Dodge. Nan opened the garage door and Calvin backed the truck inside. He helped Nan bring in the bike, trailer, and skid.

  Nan watched Calvin for a moment, a smile on her lips as he lowered the garage door. Like the house itself, the garage was dug back into the bluff. It was impossible to tell, for, like the house, narrow windows provided light, as did the light tubes that came down from their exposed ends along the upper patio wall. With the white painted walls and ceiling, the garage was as well lit as any standard garage, and better than many.

  Trailing his hand along the workbench top that was part of the well equipped home shop, Calvin joined Nan near the connecting door between the garage and house. “I’m going up to take a look around,” he said as Nan started to enter the house.

  She nodded and said, “I’ll start supper.”

  Calvin turned to the other inside door. He took the short hallway that connected the garage rear entrance to the stairway that went up to the top patio. When they’d helped design the house, both he and Nan had insisted on alternate means of egress in case of fire, despite the house and garage both having sprinkler systems installed.

  That was why there were two entrances on the front, the stairwell to the surface at the back of the units, plus the ability to exit the second floor rooms onto the balcony and climb down. There were projecting rocks in the front wall extending out to create an adequate emergency stairway down from the balcony.

  With more than a touch of pride, Calvin surveyed their property from the top patio. They owned twenty acres of old growth forested land. It had been only a tenth of the cost of adjoining properties due to the nature of the geography of the parcel. There were almost no level spots in the twenty acres. The only ones of any size were the one at the face of the bluff and the small area on top of the bluff. The hill that was the bluff fell off sharply to the north, though it wasn’t a bluff like the south side. The east and west side were more gradual, but still steep slopes. The rest of the property consisted of steep hillsides, valleys, and ridges, with many rocky outcroppings.

  The surrounding areas were hilly, but nothing like their little piece. The real estate agent had been cooperative in the sale. The owner was making a mint on the other parcels of the three hundred or so acres he owned, so had been willing to let this parcel go cheap, since no one seemed to want to build anything on the up and down landscape.

  It was at one corner of the large plot, bordering federal land on the back, the Peterson place on one side. The other two sides bordered the Calhoun property, with no easy way in. The only reason Calvin and Nan took it was the easement they got from the owner to get to it from the county road. They’d checked from the air, and used topographical maps to select the route in. It bordered the owner’s property line for most of the distance, and then cut in toward Calvin’s and Nan’s place.

  The Calhoun’s had not been too upset, since the easement for the track would service several more parcels, except for the last section, and it was on some more or less otherwise un-usable land. It was up to Calvin and Nan to turn the last section into a road. The section serving the rest of the lots the Calhoun’s paid a contractor to run a road-grader along the path to establish a minimal road. Additional work would be done as the properties were developed.

  Calvin could see several sections of the road from his vantage point. He’d cleared specific trees during the construction of the house to enable the views he wanted. He turned around and looked down the steep slope that was the back side of the bluff. Quite a few trees and all the brush had been cleared around the house site, to minimized fire danger, though there were still plenty of trees around. Just none within fifty feet or so of the house.

  They weren’t really concerned too much about actual fire damage, as they were lack of oxygen if there was a forest fire. There was a relatively large gulley that drained the flat area in front of the bluff. It was steep and long, mostly bare rock. It emptied into another wash that ran to the creek on Peterson’s property.

  They were sure that it would act as a vent, bringing fresh air to almost the front door of the house in the event of a fire up where they were. Also during the construction phase much of the large rock excavated from the bluff to make room for the structure was used to create a series of step dams in the gulley to control the flow of runoff water and slow it as much as possible.

  Though there was a good well that provided more than five gallons a minute fresh water flow, they had installed a solar powered pump with photovoltaic panel and battery at the largest of the containments. The pump was on a float switch and would pump accumulated water up to the large cistern under the front patio. The water went through a sand and gravel filter into the sump for the pump to keep the water as clean as possible. The water went through a high grade filter when it was pumped from the cistern.

  Calvin walked over to the open garden plot. They’d plant their outside crop in a few more days. The seedlings were doing fine in the green house that bordered the garden plot. The big greenhouse beside the garage door was already providing salad vegetables and they had a good start on berries and melons, too. The greenhouse had been one of the first things finished during the construction.

  Looking up, Calvin gave a little prayer of thanks. While they’d worked hard to achieve their dream, there’d been an element or two of luck, as well, and Calvin was appreciative. Finding the property when they were in the market had been sheer chance. They’d been scrimping and saving for five years, with both of them working, to be able to afford anything. Both their families had been willing to present highly unusual wedding gifts, after they announced that they would be married three weeks after the house was finished.

  The wedding registry had been a list of wants, rather than a list of stores. While they received a few conventional gifts, the families had come through with many of the things with which they wanted to equip, furnish, and stock the house.

  Calvin was still smiling when he went downstairs to the kitchen. Nan looked up, saw the smile on Calvin’s face and her own smile broadened. She quickly stepped over to him, threw her arms around his neck and kissed him.

  “Hey,” he said, after the kiss ended, “what’s this all about?”

  Stepping away, Nan replied, “Nothing special. I’m just happy. Being together the last few years was good, but being married is better. We have the house we want, in an area we love. You have a good job. We’ve got money in the bank. A little, anyway. And I just love you, is all.”

  “I love you too, sweetie. You’re all a man could ask for in a wife.”

  They kissed again, but Nan stopped them from going further. “Later,” she said with a laugh, removing his hands from her bottom. “We both need something to eat, and I want to go over the budget with you after that. Then we can get to the fun stuff.”

  Calvin laughed, too. “Okay, baby. You’re right. I am ready for some supper.”

  “You do the salad and I’ll do the entrée.”

  “Sure thing. What’s it going to be tonight?”

  The teakettle was whistling on the propane cook stove. “Turkey tetrazzini. It’s the last of the can.” Nan poured the boiling water over the freeze-dried entrée in the bowl on the counter.

  “It’s a good one,” Calvin replied, taking out salad makings from the Servel propane/electric refrigerator.

  “This finishes up the long term storage food that your Uncle Henry got us. The month supply lasted us a little over three weeks. We’ll need to increase the quantities when we reorder.”

  “I know,” Calvin said. “I really didn’t think it would last us a month. Figured the way it is, for a sedentary person, the serving sizes just aren’t enough for active people. But the stuff is good.

  “If we get that
one-year supply the way we planned, and then add quite a few individual cases of specific items, we would be in good shape, long term. Then we could buy a four month supply… based on the same plan as the year supply… every month. We’ll use a fourth and store the other three-fourths and have a second full year supply in four months. We can keep doing that until we have the five-year supply we planned.

  “With the supply we have now from the order we put in after we got married, that will give us a fifteen month LTS supply now, plus that from the month ahead.”

  “Good idea,” Nan said. She was setting the table as the meal absorbed the water. “I wish we could do it a little faster,” she continued, filling glasses with water from the fridge.

  “We have to watch the budget. If I get that bonus for the Tashman job, we can put half of it into LTS food and the rest in savings.”

  “We need to get our savings back up, but I think we should acquire gold and silver a bit more quickly.”

  “That’s what we’re doing with the tree thinning service money.”

  Nan dished out the turkey tetrazzini as Calvin set the filled salad bowls on the table. “I know, but with the world the way it is, I’d like to increase our holdings.”

  They both sat down and Calvin reached for his fork. “I don’t know sweetie. We really knocked a hole in our savings when we built this place. I’d like to get our cash level back up to at least a one year salary equivalent.”

  “Me, too. I was thinking more about what you said today. I like helping with the tree thinning. It won’t be long before we have a five-year supply of wood stocked up. You were right about me being able to get a job in town. I kind of miss working, actually.”

  A dazzling smile lit her face as she added, “With the design of this house, it only takes a few minutes a day to take care of it, and you help with that and the greenhouses and garden.”

  “You really want to go back to a job? We are doing okay.”

  “I think so. Something that it won’t be too difficult to leave, once I’m four or five months pregnant.”

  Calvin’s eyes widened. “You’re pregnant?”

  “No, silly. Not now. We have to keep trying. But we are trying, and it will happen. But in the meantime, I want to keep busy. I hadn’t really thought about it before. I really thought I’d have plenty to do around here, but the place is so efficient it just doesn’t take very long.”

  “Your craft work?”

  “We have plenty of afghans. And enough baby things for five babies.”

  “Well, that settles it. It would let us build up things even faster, if you want to go back to work.”

  “I do, Cal. I really do. With us doing the woodlot thinning only together, that still leaves me a lot of time when you’re at work.” She smiled. “As long as it’s not too hard. I am supposed to be living a life of leisure now, you know.”

  Calvin snorted. “Like you ever could. Well, go with me Monday and check around. You can make a day of it and I’ll pick you up on the way back from the city. You did want something in town, and not in the city, didn’t you?”

  “Oh, yes,” Nan said adamantly. “I’m tired of the city, except for the monthly shopping runs.”

  “I know. As soon as we can, we’ll start a business in town so we can both work it. Like the tree thinning operation. Just too tight to try that now.”

  “True. But it won’t be long, I’m sure.” Nan grinned at her husband. “You still want to do the toy route?”

  Blushing just slightly, Calvin harrumphed. “I never should have told you that.” Nan laughed delightedly.

  “Come on, Calvin. You know I think it is a good idea. If Mr. Anderson retires, there won’t be anyone else to do small equipment work. What you have in mind should give you work year round. Work that people need. Especially as the other development around here takes place.”

  “You don’t think it’s silly? I mean, I really do want to do that type of work because of the equipment. I loved construction toys when I was a kid. And I liked the construction work when I was in college.”

  Rather softly, Nan replied. “Honey, I know they aren’t really toys, but tough, professional grade tools.”

  “I know you do,” Calvin replied. “But they really are neat, as well as being extremely versatile. And they are expensive.”

  “But you just said it. They are versatile. And you can start… well, not small… but with just the basics and add attachments as you go.”

  “You really wouldn’t mind?”

  “Of course not.” Nan grinned again. “And I have to admit, running the equipment does look like fun.”

  Calvin grinned back. “Yeah. I’ll work up a serious proposal. See how good our credit is.”

  “Good. The sooner you get out of the city, the better.”

  They finished their meal in companionable silence. Nan had started some freeze-dried sliced strawberries soaking in fresh cream. They had those for desert as they watched television that evening.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  The next day, a Sunday, they slept in, as was their custom. As they were getting dressed, Nan asked Calvin, “How many trips you think it will take to move what we harvested yesterday?”

  “I think four will do it.”

  Over breakfast, which was granola with blueberries from their LTS food stocks, Nan again spoke up. “That truck. The Unimog. That would make the wood harvesting a lot easier, wouldn’t it?”

  “Sure it would,” replied Calvin. “Especially with a material handling arm. That would be one of the attachments I’d eventually like to get.”

  Nan nodded. “It would take a lot of money to get started, wouldn’t it?”

  This time Calvin nodded. He paused his eating and looked over at Nan questioningly. “Where you going with this? You know I don’t have plans to do it right now. That plan I was talking about is one of the long-range plans we always try to do for big stuff. Like this house.”

  “I know,” replied Nan. She smiled. “I’m not ragging on you. Actually it is the other way around. I’m thinking we should make it a shorter-range plan. Wouldn’t the equipment be collateral for the loan?”

  “Sure it would. But like you said, it’s a lot of money. And doing the tree thinning for Mr. Peterson, and even the Calhoun’s property, wouldn’t be enough to make the payments.”

  “What about working with Mr. Anderson? Getting some experience. You said once that his old backhoe was barely able to do the work here, it was so worn out. Maybe he’d welcome a silent partner with new equipment.”

  “I…” Calvin started to speak, but closed his mouth and looked thoughtful for a moment. “I always figured that if I did it, I’d do it independently.”

  “I know you have some experience from when you worked construction when you were going to college, but wouldn’t some hands on work with Mr. Anderson be an advantage? Plus, it would be getting your foot in the door of a lot of customers.”

  “That’s true.” Again Calvin’s eyes lost focus as he thought about things. “And you could learn it just as easily as I. I could continue to work at the bank during the week and work with Mr. Anderson on… say… alternate Saturdays. We could continue to do the tree thinning on the alternate Saturdays and on Sundays.”

  Calvin looked over at Nan. “That is, if you wanted to…”

  “I definitely do want to learn. If I get just a part time job in town, that would leave me plenty of time to work with Mr. Anderson. Do you think he’d take me on?”

  Calvin snorted. “He lets Jimmy Hollister work for him. I can’t see him not letting you, even with your lack of experience. He was impressed with the work you were doing here when we were building the house.”

  “Okay,” Nan replied. “Then let’s think about this a bit more, and check with Mr. Anderson. You can do your proposal for the bank after that and see if we can get the equipment.”

  “This is a big step, Nan,” said Calvin. “As big a step as the house was, and getting married.”

  Ve
ry seriously Nan said, “If something happens in the near future, we’d never be able to do this. You saw the news last night. Wouldn’t that equipment be invaluable in the aftermath of a serious disaster?”

  Calvin nodded. “That’s one of the reasons I wanted to get it. We’re in good shape here, now, but as things get worse there are going to be many, many people needing help to get prepared. We need to think about this some more.”

  “I agree. Let’s finish up breakfast and get to work. We can both think about it some more and then discuss it some more. How does that sound?”

  “Good. It sounds good.”

  With the tandem wheel trailer behind the Dodge, they had all the timber and trimmings cut up and stacked along the lower patio west wall. They’d been keeping track of the firewood they were gathering. This load brought them up to forty cords total. They’d only used a few pieces to test out the fireplace and wood stoves after they’d been installed.