I've been sick as a dog and spent most of the week curled up in bed or on the couch. Which has made a decidedly stressful week much longer and more exhausting. My husband has been sick with the same bug and trudging through long hours at work. He's working all weekend and he's certainly not the only person on base working long hours and 6 or 7 days a week.
We've continued to have multiple aftershocks daily. The base continues to have power, food, and gas, but even in Misawa city supplies are running thin for the Japanese. On the good side of things, some of the normalcy will return to base on Monday since schools will re-open and after school programs for the kids will continue. Although this removed north side of base feels a little deserted since the shoppette and gym over here remain closed, the main side continues to work.
Voluntary departures were approved a few days ago, and the processing for those departues begins today with those with medical conditions, those pregnant, or those with children 24 months or younger. Since it's a voluntary decision for all dependents and civilians, I had to make the choice to return to the states for 30 days or less, or stay here in Misawa and continue living with the limitations. It was a hard decision, especially since the government was covering the costs of the round trip flight to the west coast, and maybe even to the permanent residence. While it would be amazing to get home and see family and friends and have a degree of normalcy back in my life, I ultimately made the decision to stay here. I do not have pressing medical conditions or small children. Our small family of 2 can live with relatively small amounts of electricity and garbage (the two most pressing matters of conservation at the moment). As chaotic and stressful as base life has become, staying here means I can continue to provide emotional support to my husband. Once I get healthy again, I can volunteer and provide help in the relief efforts, one way or another. I may be stressed right now, but I would be even more stressed worrying about Jeff from thousands of miles away. He has a tendency to work, work, work, and sometimes he deserves some TLC. Most importantly, since there is no real danger at this distance from the nuclear situation, being 240+ miles north and upwind, I didn't feel the need to evacuate.
The chaos of this voluntary evacuation is taking over the base, though. The rumor mills are running overtime, and I'm getting a little sick about comments of radiation way up here. The news is taking the facts and running with them, making things more dramatic and more dire than they seem to be. While it's understandable that everyone is scared, it's exhausting to sort through all the crap and find out what's actually fact.
Basically, I'm exhausted from being sick and even more exhausted from the chaos.
Not the most upbeat post of the week, but it's a short update about what's been going on in Misawa. Or a reaction to what's been going on? Not sure, I'm sleepy and on medication ;)
I know a lot of people are impatient for updates and news from here, but there honestly isn't a lot of change. The main focus here is energy conservation and getting all the work centers up and running. The voluntary evacuation process has started, and is of course about 1,000x more complicated by people's panic and impatience. The rest of us are chugging along at a relatively normal speed. Daily updates are a little monotonous at the moment, but if I can say it enough, both Jeff and I are okay and in no danger, besides our immune systems.
No comments:
Post a Comment