by Pete Thorsen
I worked on road repair for awhile then I worked on other repair and clean up jobs. I would see many other work crews when I was out doing other jobs. I worked on a farm or ranch putting up hay. That was a short length job even though I went to several different places doing that haying job. The jobs lasted all summer with no end in sight. I asked if I could be allowed to go home and winterize my house so the pipes would not freeze and destroy the place. I was asked where I had to go and the next week transport was arranged for me to go home. It was like a week’s leave from the Army.
Transport was also arranged for my return trip. I was able to get my pickup started (thanks to some help from a trucker). I drove home and drained all the water lines and got everything set up for a winter without any heat and was back to catch my ride for my return trip.
The whole work operation was run pretty smoothly. There were always places to stay for the night and food was always available. Occasionally it was just three MRE’s for the day’s meals, but that was when it was only a small crew working away from the city.
The crews were either all male or all female. The troopers assigned were always all male to my work crews whether it was all female troopers for the female work crews I never found out. Sometimes there were no troopers assigned, and one of the crew was given the directions and the means to drive the rest of the crew to the work location.
The barracks we stayed in were always all male, and I assume there were others that were all female.
Chapter 19
While my first civilian job for the government was awful the rest I found interesting. I was moved from job to job on a pretty constant basis. Most were just hard labor jobs, where they just needed bodies to do some mundane work. All the jobs needed to be done. These were not ‘civic betterment’ jobs where we painted murals on city walls or something. They were all just jobs that the nation needed to be done. I worked over winter in three different factories making different things. One was at a place that made and packaged breakfast cereal. I also worked at a slaughter house for awhile.
The factories were the first jobs I worked at that had both men and women working together. It wasn’t a big deal, and there were no issues, it was just different from the other jobs in that aspect.
I was moved around a lot but never all the way across the country. The jobs were all in or near Colorado. There was no unnecessary travel. I suppose they had conscripted workers everywhere so long distance travel would just be wasteful.
By spring I had a lot of experience in a wide range of jobs. Then there was a change. One day after breakfast, the tables in the cafeteria were cleared, and workers set papers on a couple of tables as a man came in to speak to all of us.
“The paperwork stacked up here on the first table is a list of job openings. These are just steady regular jobs. Some of these jobs might be ones that you have worked at before, and many will be new to you. You will be able to apply for these jobs. Each one of these jobs has a simple job number next to it. On the second table are job applications. You will apply for the job you want on these applications. There are three boxes on each application. Put the job number for your first, second, and third choice of jobs.
“Just like applying for any job in the past you might or might not get the job. Again these are more or less permanent jobs. Temporary housing will be provided at first, and later you will have the opportunity to buy a home or rent one. Some of you will get one of these jobs. Those that do not can continue as you are and we will keep all of you busy.
“Those that do get one of the listed jobs may find that the job does not suit you. We certainly understand that, and just like what you have been doing you can quit at any time, and you will receive compensation for whatever time you have worked.
“As time goes on there will be more job openings as things gradually return to a more normal situation. I know some of you might have homes to return to, but there might be no jobs listed in your area. There may still be job openings in your area that are not listed here. Or maybe you have a profession or a skill and can start up your own business. You now have options. All of you have at least some money owed you by the government. Some of you have more because you have worked longer.
“There are no more ration stamps or vouchers being distributed anymore. You can receive payment for what you are owed from the time you worked and can make your own life as before or you can continue working for your government. There will be no more handouts.
“You are all free individuals. By working for the government, you have conditioned your bodies for hard work and have received training and experience in a wide range of jobs, Through your hard work, you have also helped rebuild this great nation. Now is the time to enjoy the result of all your hard labor. As they say, the world is yours.
“I know many of you have questions. I urge you first to come up and get an application, a pencil, and the list of jobs. Read what is available and apply to those that interest you. Each job also does show the compensation for doing that work. Like in the past hard work will be rewarded with additional compensation.
“After reading the list of jobs if you have questions, there will be many of us to here to try and answer them. Please note that we do not have information on each particular job listed. What info that is available is printed on the lists. Thank you for all the work that you have done so far. We can all now enjoy the fruits of your labor.
“Just a note. These are not government jobs. They are private companies that have these job openings. Remember you can continue to work for your government just as you have been doing. At least for awhile yet. At some point, all jobs will revert back again to be from private companies.
“Thank you, and I hope you all find employment in areas that you desire.”
The room erupted into talk. No yelling or anything just calm talking along with a mass movement to the front area where the two tables of paperwork were found. I waited a bit for the rush to subside before I went up and got the list and the application. I sat down again and read through the list of job openings. I right away noticed that many were factory jobs of one kind or another. No bad jobs by any means but I had discovered that I did not want a factory job even though the work in them was usually very easy in a clean environment.
There were some listings that I did have some interest in though. As I went through them, I noticed that all of them were outdoor jobs or at least mostly outdoor jobs. Some like plumber’s helper and electrician’s helper had elements of both inside and outside work. These jobs would allow me to learn a trade. I decided to apply for both of those jobs and also for an oil company maintenance worker. All three of those jobs were at least somewhat close to my house. Maybe too far to commute but close enough so I could visit my house occasionally for at least some upkeep on it.
I turned in my application and asked no questions though many were apparently asking countless questions of those in front. It was noon before we left for work that day and we returned at the normal time.
We always worked six days every week. Sundays we didn’t work. We were free to do as we wished but were still fed normally of course. Mostly we all did laundry on Sundays or just spent the day lazing about doing nothing. I often went for long walks on Sundays. I found that to be more relaxing than just laying in my bunk or playing cards or whatever with the other workers.
Two weeks after we had all tendered our applications the first of the workers were called in and left for their new jobs. After that every couple days more workers would leave. Soon my name came up, and I got a job as a plumber’s helper in the greater Durango, Colorado area.
I was provided transport, and when I arrived in the city, I was provided a check for what the government owed me along with some temporary housing. The housing was a one bedroom apartment. It was mostly furnished. I had to assume the last occupants likely had died. There were personal items left there that most people would not have left behind if they had just moved out.
I found out my bank
was still in business. I went to the local branch, and they reopened my account, and I still had the just over one hundred dollars in that account. I deposited my check and took out some cash.
It was two days before I had to report to my new job. I hitched a ride to where I had left my truck and drove home to my house. I aired the place out. The power was off, and I used the generator to get water. I cleaned up inside and outside at my place then closed it down again. I took a bunch of my clothes and a few other things, including some food, back to my new apartment in the city. I also went shopping.
There were a few businesses open. A couple of gas stations so I filled the gas tank on my truck with fresh gas. The price was much lower than it had been before I started working for the government. It was the same with groceries when I went shopping there. There was still very limited selection, but prices were down from the terrible highs that they had been at before.
By the time my two free days were up, I was ready to work. I met my new boss, and we started working right away. The first many jobs were repairing plumbing that had been damaged by freezing and bursting. Often as we finished jobs, there were construction guys behind us fixing the damage done by the busted water pipes.
There was no new construction, here or anywhere. The population of the United States had been drastically reduced. There was a large excess of housing now available. Things were coming back, but there was quite a mess to clean up. A physical mess, an emotional mess, and a financial mess.
The physical part was the easiest and was an ongoing project all across the whole country. Some things were being fixed, and some were being razed to the ground, and some would likely never have anything done to them, at least for a long time.
The emotional part would likely mend in time for most people. Some would never mend. Some had a very hard time accepting what had happened and how the world had changed.
The financial mess would be a slow process. Many had died, and it was not uncommon for everyone in a family to have died. Leaving no heirs to whatever property survived them. It was the same with many businesses. And there still was all that debt. House loans, car loans, student loans, credit card debt, business debt, school bonds, municipal bonds, the whole list was almost an endless amount of sad stories. But somehow it all had to be accounted for, either written off, reduced, or paid.
There were many, many changes taking place at every level of government. The list of services was being drastically reduced, and the number of free things was being totally eliminated or drastically reduced. New laws were enacted, old laws were repealed, there were few new regulations, but countless old regulations were being thrown out.
Little of all of it hardly affected me. I did get a different truck. There was quite an excess of vehicles. I bought a much newer truck but kept my old one.
And I kept working. The free apartment eventually was no longer free. But the rent was very low. There was just way too much housing for the number of people. I still kept up my house and stayed there most weekends. I am again scavenging for free wood to burn and other useful items for the place. I have bought another propane tank and placed there. I had it filled as I got the money. Just to be ready for the next time.
I was able to save money again. Wages were low, but the cost of everything went down, so it all evened out and was better than before it seemed. Taxes were very low, and promises were made to keep them low. But I do wonder just how long those promises will be kept.
And I met a woman. She works at a café that I occasionally stop at near my apartment. We would talk when I would come in for coffee. Finally, she asked me if I was ever going to ask her out on a date. Since then we have seen more of each other. I am pretty sure she is waiting for me to ask her to get married.
That would be a very big step for me. But she is a very nice person. She is really too nice for the likes of me. She told me everything she went through during the dark times the nation had and how she survived. I did tell her how I made it through. I actually had it much, much easier than most people.
I did finally tell her about the men I killed. She took it in stride. Things were different then, and people did what they had to do to survive those dark times. Even after I told her she still liked me.
I realized that my life changed after I had won the lottery. That lottery win saved my life in more than one way. It changed my life for the better and it changed my luck for the better. I think my good luck is still holding. I guess maybe I will ask her to marry me. Times are changing, and maybe it is to the point that I should change too.
The End
The Lottery Winner
By Pete Thorsen
Thank you for reading this short story of mine, and I hope you found it enjoyable. If it was something you liked, please watch for more of my stories to follow. Below are some of my already published stories that you might also enjoy. So far I have well over 50 stories published on Kindle with most also in print. My success is totally the result of you, my readers, and you have my most deep felt Thank You!
Pete Thorsen
A Rocky
Demise
A bitter young man that is totally disenchanted with America’s government ekes out a living alone on a small homestead. Completely by chance, he meets a young woman who also has no love for the government who made her a widow. They come together and realize the government has nothing to do with the feelings that each has for the other and soon they are wed. By happenstance, they barely start their lives together when twin asteroids strike the Earth causing an incredible disaster.
A Hard
Fall
A husband and wife are just finishing a road trip vacation when what first seems to be just a local power outage turns out to be much more serious than that. They make it back safely to their little homestead and wait and wonder if their grown son who lives two states away will also be able to come back home again. It's fall, and they know winter is coming which will make it very hard for everyone. This is one family's story of living through a drastic catastrophe that affects the whole United States.
When The Bottom
Fell Out
A husband and wife decide to move away from the California big city life that is all they have ever known and raise their son in a very rural area of Idaho. They find it is a big change and find themselves changing their whole outlook and the beliefs that they have had all their lives. Their son and the parents both have a lot to learn. When the nation's economy starts to fail, they both agree the changes they made were good ones.
A Nation
in Trouble
Doug is mostly a typical American. He cares nothing about the news of the nation mainly because he knows he can do nothing about what is happening anyway. And the nation is heading into bad economic trouble whether Doug knows this or not. As things get worse and worse, Doug is lucky enough to meet a friend that offers him refuge on the family ranch if things get really bad. Soon after the time comes when he is most grateful for that offer of the safe haven.
Canadian
Adventure
Shortly after arriving in Canada for their Dad's new job these two teenagers are kidnapped and through a series of events wind up crash landed alone in the Canadian wilderness. But the kids take it in stride and make the most of what they have to work with to survive in the dire situation where they now find themselves. They make it through every day with only the hope of rescue to keep them going.
Lonely Road South
When a solar flare plays havoc with all of mankind’s electronics, everyone suffers. One man, who knows the word “prepper” but has really done nothing about being prepared, now wishes that he would have done more when he still had the chance. Now, being in a northern state, he decides to head south where at least the winters are warmer. This is his story of that trip south.
America on Fire
Four complete stories of apocalyptic disasters that befall the citizens of the United States by one of America’s popular apocalyptic fiction writ
ers. Read how some Americans rise to meet the challenges and fight to survive when disaster strikes the whole country.
In Finding Hope, a deadly pandemic sweeps the globe resulting in the deaths of a large amount of the world population. One man finds a purpose to his life when he finds and befriends a little girl.
In Three Strikes And You’re Out America, three nuclear EMP missiles explode high above the United States it causes extreme devastation by taking out the whole electric grid and all electronics.
In An Economic Firestorm, the economic collapse of the US Dollar and the economy of the USA are lived through by a family in rural Arizona.
In Thar She Blows, see what happens to a few groups of people when the Yellowstone Caldera erupts and devastates a huge portion of the United States.
Disaster in America
Four complete stories of apocalyptic disasters that befall the citizens of the United States by one of America’s most popular apocalyptic fiction writers. Read how some Americans rise to meet the challenges and fight to survive when disaster strikes.
In What? The sun did all this, a massively strong CME that strikes the earth destroying the electric grid and most electric devices. One man attempts to reunite with his scattered family.
