OK, it’s been more than three weeks after one of the most important events in Venezuela’s contemporary history.
You know already what happened the first three days after the elections past July 28th: turmoil, emotions getting out of control, Hugo statues being knocked down everywhere, and so on.
There has been a consequent wave of brutal repression violating our sacred Constitution. Something that the world should know about, by the way.
The first three weeks after an event
The first three weeks after a major event, like the incredible election fraud we are going through right now, haven’t been peaceful. Turmoil and a tense situation after the brutal repression are present everywhere, in sudden bursts. Whenever there are uniformed people (we don’t know if they are LEOs for real or just convicts who were given uniforms and impunity to spread fear amongst defenseless people), civilians discreetly disappear from sight. As usual, in the major cities, the centers of power, it is much worse than in the non-critical cities.
The highly suspicious, seemingly thriving economy (only for a small portion of chosen ones) makes one remember a series like Ozark, where a huge amount of cash flow came from (ahem) “underground” sources…because the main economic activity was once the crude oil production, but now, this is practically inexistent.
An interesting aspect: whenever they decide to stop someone, there are never fewer than four LEOs. Two on each motorcycle. Then they make a circle around the people they want to check. They surround those they want to harass.
This is because of two main reasons:
- The psychological impact to deter any possible attempt to run or fight and make the victim feel threatened and helpless.
- The other one, and the worst aspect, is blocking someone filming from the distance. Filming and uploading these videos to social media has allowed people to detect a bunch of fake LEOs.
An interesting aspect of this experience is that snitches will ALWAYS sell others to the wolf pack, no matter what country they are in —Cuba, Russia, Slovakia, the UK, or Poland. I will dedicate a little more to this in the next article. It deserves special attention because it is a trend that has been showing its ugly head throughout history.
Whenever this sort of regime makes it to the stage where they need to inspire fear in the people, they resort to violent shock troops to keep doing their stuff for a price. The Mussolini advisors did it, the German “fellows” did it (ahem), Cubans have been in that prison of an island for over 60 years with neighbors selling them over for a few food bags, and now it’s our turn. With a little difference: 200 years ago, we kicked those oppressing us back to the sea.
Not too many differences now.
What people are eating
On a lighter note, to ease the mood and not make the article so grim, I wanted to mention that I remember three events that caught my attention while we were experiencing the worst of the scarcity.
People used sugar substitutes like the Coke sweetener (in bulk, incredibly high concentration!) instead of sugar, and some odd beans as a coffee “substitute” (yuck). This was mostly in the cities. We have tons of sugar cane blocks (it’s called “piloncillo” in most of Central America and MX. In Peru, this block is known as “chancaca“. I use it as a staple, too, because it is highly energetic, and tasty, and goes incredibly well with white cheese and some bread in a hurry or as a snack. A small bite, together with a piece of white cheese, will calm your hunger for a couple of hours. It’s an old trick I’ve learned since young age.
This “papelon“, with our local variety of jerky is something that never missed the saddlebags of the “Llaneros“. (Local variety of cowboys, usually riding barefoot or with alpargatas) I’ve tried it, and it works. It’s versatile because you can prepare a refreshing beverage by adding lime juice to a jar of dissolved sugar cane in ice-cold water. It’s useful for baking spiced sweet rolls too. Delicious. It improves your mood when you’re down.
It is very shelf-stable out of the fridge but needs to be stashed away, safe from mice and bugs like everything else. It needs to be stored in a dry place, and it needs to be cut later with a knife or ground. Otherwise, in humid climates, it will absorb moisture and become sticky if not wrapped in plastic. I am used to eating it like candy, or with a small piece of hard white cheese. The combination of salty and sweet flavors is something we grow up with in the flat lands of Venezuela.
Butcheries now sell cattle and poultry parts that were once considered waste: chicken claws, beef lungs, intestines, kidneys, stomach, and whatever other innards you may think of. Good for dogs and cats, though.
Eating this was not exactly common before the economic meltdown. People with meager resources would cook these in creative ways to increase their protein intake.
The obnoxious control points on every road, where guards seize and confiscate anything edible without a purchase receipt. It happened back in the worst of the scarcity period, but it seems the guards are now allowed more freedom with the civilians. And this can blow in their faces at any moment. People are so annoyed that the situation is highly volatile; allowing the uniformed people to abuse the civilians guarantees they won’t turn the guns (mostly without ammo, by the way) to them anytime soon.
Eggs, meat, and charcuterie products like cheese and sausages were (still are!) a very sought-after product. Mind you this is not something that will change, no matter where you are reading this.
These three events seem to be a common pattern in lands going through our travails, where the law is distorted and warped to the convenience of those wielding the whip.
In the worst of the hyperinflation and scarcity period
When the “special period” in Cuba was at its worst, I was at university struggling with calculus. I still remember the stories in the newspapers. Not too much in the TV news, but it wasn’t good. I remember feeling bad because I could afford a couple of good steaks per week, minimum, and Cubans had that…”meat substitute” mixture that included all types of odd parts of pigs, goats, cows, and God knows what else, once every two weeks.
For most people my age, establishing a link between those years and what we would experience later in the 2013-2017 lapse was almost automatic. The similarities were too great.
I had already finished the first half of writing this article, and suddenly, we just had a power blackout. Nation-wide. Over 20 million people were without access to some kind of electrical power back on Friday August 30th.
What a way to end the month. 18 hours without grid power.
Staying comfortable
Sadly, my generator is still not working. However, I’m getting the spare part to fix it this week, and I need to put in a few other stuff, such as my PC, sound system, and a fan to keep working inside my bedroom. A little bit cramped but for the time being I don’t have the means to put to work the AC in the home office space I have destined.
I could put the AC to work for a while with the 220v outlet of the generator and then switch to 110v to put the rest of the equipment to work once the room has been cooled enough to be comfortable, a couple of hours in the hottest part of the day. I’m remodeling a few things here and there to increase cooling efficiency. The walk-in closet, for instance. This doesn’t need to be cooled off and doesn’t have any doors. I have all the tools to build whatever I need and make the bedroom a separate part of this area: drills, sanders, and so on.
Maybe this sounds a little bit silly, but remodeling and redesigning your habitat to make it more energy-efficient is something we have to do.
With such a large home, three bedrooms, a huge entertainment area (not too entertaining now) consisting of a 5×4 square meters saloon, and three full-size bathrooms, it’s a little bit too much space and expensive maintenance right now.
That’s why I find the Edison batteries, robust and easy to maintain, and the passive cooling provided by Peltier cells, so appealing. They consume a lot of amperes but will supply both hot and cold water at the same time. If the design system includes photovoltaic panels, the outcome is interesting and durable. The more sun there is, the more cold air you can extract from the system.
I’m even pondering the possibility of building a green roof on a portion of a roof that was poorly built without a proper slope, which is a huge problem that generated all the leaks I’ve been experiencing.
Analyzing your dwelling surroundings with patience and time will let you see what you need for comfort, what you need for mental health, and even what you want to leave behind for those coming after you.
It’s all about keeping them safe at the end of the day, isn’t it?
Take care, and stay tuned!
What do you think?
Do you think we could see something similar here in the United States? What are your thoughts on these events?
Let us know in the comments section.
About Jose
Jose is an upper middle class professional. He is a former worker of the oil state company with a Bachelor’s degree from one of the best national Universities. He has an old but in good shape SUV, a good 150 square meters house in a nice neighborhood, in a small but (formerly) prosperous city with two middle size malls. Jose is a prepper and shares his eyewitness accounts and survival stories from the collapse of his beloved Venezuela. Jose and his younger kid are currently back in Venezuela, after the intention of setting up a new life in another country didn’t go well. The SARSCOV2 re-shaped the labor market and South American economy so he decided to give it a try to homestead in the mountains, and make a living as best as possible. But this time in his own land, and surrounded by family, friends and acquaintances, with all the gear and equipment collected, as the initial plan was.
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