Chapter 73
Having a promise ring changed things only marginally. While we were growing our confidence in each other, we weren’t yet at a point where we felt like sharing it with the world. The kind of complications that could cause just isn’t what either one of us is willing to risk, especially in a small town.
As far as other changes going on in our lives, travel has become a great deal more complicated. Now you must have a US Passport just to cross between states. The only exception to that is if you are a long-haul trucker, crossing multiple state lines and only then if you have the special decal on your driver’s license and semi tags. It was also harder to get a commercial driver’s license. As in you had to have so many years of experience with no at-fault accidents or tickets (grandfathered in), or you had to have a certificate degree from a government driving school. There was some noise made about all those changes, but it was put down to war powers and to mitigate the migration of so many illegals that are trying to stay one (or more) jumps ahead of the government deportation orders. Truckers never run solo these days. Usually there are two drivers and two “shotgun” positions. They also run convoy style so that there are security backups. Makes for cramped quarters in the cabs, but better than some of the alternatives that reach the news about truckers and their loads being hijacked … or worse.
They also say the travel restrictions are a way to deal with some of the AWOL individuals that escaped before they could be transferred overseas. Also, escapees from the “work camps” which were more and more sounding like prison camps. Derek and I have discussed it a bit and neither one of us completely believes the rationales being given but we don’t have enough information to do much more than be suspicious. Other states, even more than Georgia has, are trying to control in-state travel. NY, Michigan, California, and Texas all have fierce travel restrictions. Thus far it isn’t quite so bad here in Florida so long as you strictly observe the curfews in place.
Nationwide, any migrant overstaying their green card, or not getting it renewed, are being arrested and sent to a work camp rather than just given a court date. Anyone caught hiring someone that is illegal and/or someone that has overstayed their green card or work visa is also arrested and held until their court date. Anyone in the states on a work visa for health care has been given the opportunity to join the medical corp and work their way towards expedited citizenship. Not as many are taking the government up on that as was expected. If they weren’t in an essential or medical specialty considered essential then they were given the opportunity to self-deport or risk prison. By the end of the summer there is reportedly going to be a real problem finding medical care unless some are willing to come out of retirement.
Changes have been coming at us left and right. Mr. Dayton decided that with the cost of everything going up that it didn’t make sense to have the offices open except three days a week; Monday, Tuesday, and Thursdays. Appointments by video could be made for Wednesdays and Fridays, but only for special cases or if a Judge requires an in-court appearance.
Another big change for the community is that public school had to end in Mid-May, instead of the end, due to the fact that the state has started using the school buildings to temporarily house refugees from up north. We’ll be taking some in from NYC as they are vacating the city due to some things occurring around the UN building and complex. There’s rumors that the US may bomb the complex to make it unusable. The UN is trying to build their own army on US ground. I mean can you believe that? They are calling in assistance from their member nations and while some have made some noise to help, most are saying just give us our people. However, it looks like some people don’t want to return to their country of origin and in fact want to start a new country inside the US borders. What they think they are going to accomplish I don’t know. There’s some rumors that they have a significant amount of gold on hand which is how they are paying for the smuggled in fuel to run generators after their electric and water were cut off, but there are also rumors that this is being instigated by China and their Asian Confederation.
Here at home, I am down to two days a week in the office and one day a week helping Derek with the foreclosures. They are slowing down, at least in our area, due to all the legal constraints being put on lien holders. There is also the potential problem of squatters if the buildings are left vacant too long. While squatters are illegal here in Florida, that doesn’t mean that people don’t try it. Or, that other types of criminals don’t try and take adverse possession of a property and put illegitimate renters in, or claim they are selling the property when they don’t have the legal right to do so. The Firm is picking up a bunch of cases like that all up and down the I10 corridor from Pensacola to Jacksonville. I hear it is even worse in places like Miami, The Villages, and anywhere there were a lot of “second homes” or short-term rentals that aren’t occupied full time.
Mr. Dayton has put together a team of cleaners and evictors to handle the foreclosure cases. So far he doesn’t have them working around here but Mr. Taylor says it is just a matter of time and having enough people to manage the workload. I sincerely hope that Mr. Dayton isn’t trying to turn into a version of Harrah and Harrah, or Morgan and Morgan. Firms like that serve a purpose but Derek isn’t thrilled with the idea of working for such a firm. He doesn’t think Mr. Barnes will go for it either, but we don’t know how long Mr. Barnes will continue to practice due to his health.
On those days that I’m not in the office, and therefore have the kids with me … and Rosie as well on some days … the garden takes up a lot of my time. I’ve been harvesting greens, cucumbers, potatoes, tomatoes, bell peppers, carrots, squash, strawberries, sweet corn, and onions. Mom’s trees are giving me nectarines, peaches, plums, strawberry guava, mayhaws
[1], pomegranates
[2], Chickasaw plums
[3], and Cherry of the Rio Grande
[4]. One of the bigger projects is I’ve gone over all of the property picking wild blueberries by the bucketful. The kids (again, including Rosie) eat as many as they pick but that’s okay. It means I don’t have to fix them any snacks on those days.
Another momentous change that was made in May is that Derek finalized his decision to home school Daniel for 5th grade and that we’d reevaluate it from that point forward. I decided we’d school year ‘round, the caballeros just wouldn’t realize it. I remember Mom doing this with Tessa, Mitchell, and I when I was little. We’d do different stuff over the summer, have a little more relaxed schedule, but Mom would count it as school in our portfolio. And then Junior threw me a curve ball asking if Rosie could participate on those days I was in the Office.
“Junior … I’m not sure that will be strictly legal as far as the Home Education Program Office considers it.”
“Maynard says that part is okay. He and Mom just want her to get used to the idea of it. They’re still wondering what to do about Rosie when the regular school year starts. Mom’s worried about her job as they are cutting hours that the store is going to be open again. Uh … don’t let that get around, they aren’t starting that until July.”
“About when the northern refugees start arriving?”
Junior nodded. “Yeah. And it is going to suck. The Feds are supposed to make them work but you know making people work for their keep ain’t gonna be easy. They had a hard enough time just getting people on the dole to work a little bit for their checks. I hear them people think they are going to be assigned office jobs and the like only they ain’t got them kinda spots around here. Between you and me, you might want to say Maynard and I overheard that they’ll get up early and be bussed to munition plants or field work, but it ain’t gonna be no office job and whatever check they get is going to be missing what it costs to provide room and board.”
The stupidity was almost breathtaking. “Oh wonderful. Are they trying to start another riot?”
“Shhh. Not so loud. I tol’ ya, we ain’t supposed to have heard this stuff. But, that’s exactly what is likely to happen when them people find out they ain’t getting’ the long list of free stuff some of them northern politicians have been promising them. The ones being sent out west are going to have it even worse. They’re going to be living in tent cities and they’re going to replace the big tractors at the giant corporate farms out there supposedly to help save fuel. I can hear it now. The new era of slavery.”
There are a lot of people wondering how this is all going to play out.
[1] Mayhaw Uses: Learn How To Use Mayhaw Fruit
[2] How to Preserve Pomegranates
[3] Chickasaw Plum - University of Florida, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences
[4] Cherry of the Rio Grande Gene Joyner.