Waste

Since the bridges came down, we haven't had any encounters with the Exiles. On the surface I want to say that's a good thing, but it also makes me very suspicious. Fortunately, I'm not the only one with that reaction, so I don't seem crazy.

We've begun the process of hauling in all the stuff from the supply dumps we can still reach. The weather has become unseasonably warm, and there has been a corresponding increase in zombie activity. The council made the call to empty our storehouses, rather than face the possibility that we might have to fight our way through hordes of undead to get to our caches in the event the exiles went after the rest of our supplies.

Looks like that was a good call, because the very first cache we went to had been tampered with. It was a food storage site, mostly grains we'd traded for, and the signs that someone had been there were subtle. It was a lucky thing that one of the scouts that went to empty the place had been there just a few hours before and remembered seeing a particular chair having been in one spot. When he got back, it'd been moved.

Naturally we expect the worst, so the food has been destroyed. It wasn't a huge blow to our excess food supply, and thankfully the other suppl dumps left to us have been left untouched. Still, knowing the enemy had been there and left the food in place sends shivers down my spine. We took a sample to see if it had been poisoned, though our means for testing it here are pretty limited.

Right now, our outlook is decent. All things considered, the immediate future doesn't look too dangerous. I know those are more famous last words, but they're the truth. The only quick access the Exiles have to this side of town is across the remaining bridge carrying the interstate, and we've got people watching that. There are other bridges farther away, of course, but steps have been taken to assure we get a lot of warning should the Exiles use any of the ones in adjacent counties.

One of the good things about the new communities hereabouts choosing not to come stay inside New Haven's walls is that they have to keep a close eye out for any movement by the exiles. As things stand, it would be nearly impossible for the enemy to flank us with a large force. They might be able to get folks across the river somewhere else and circle around to the west, but we're going to see them coming if they do.

The biggest worry right now is that they have boats. Or, god help us, some piece of military machinery that will throw a bridge across the river.

But we can't focus on what might be. All we can do is prepare for what we expect to come, and deal with the rest when and if it happens.

I'm hoping to get fully back into the groove today. I've talked to the council and there are several odd positions that need someone with experience in planning and logistics. All the people I trained are occupied doing their respective jobs, so I'll take on the hodgepodge of part-time positions that need me. One is in defense, one in meal planning, one in materials coordination...

There's a surprising amount of structure and bureaucracy in New Haven's government now. From what I see, much of it is good and ensures that no piece or part of the system that makes sure the needs of all our citizens are met can threaten the whole by failing. It's not the system in place that bothers me--most of it was implemented by my trainees, and they have good heads on their shoulders--but rather a lot of policy set by the leadership. That is where we have to make inroads, because this new council seems to have some large blind spots.

That's one more job I'll add to the pile.