Names of Vault Residents:
- Mom: Sarah Johnson; 42 years old.
- Oldest Sister: Emily Johnson; 22 years old.
- Me (Second Oldest, male): Michael Johnson; 20 years old.
- Twin Sister: Lily Johnson; yeap, she's also 20 years old.
- Youngest Sister: Grace Johnson; 18 years old.
- Girlfriend: Nicole Daley; almost 19 years old.
Day 121:
Yeap, Nicole became my girlfriend. I was the only person she could talk to, so it was inevitable that she would fall for me. It was the same in my case. It's not like I had options either. Date my sisters, fuck what I'm even thinking. I mean Nicole could date one of my sisters. But lucky me, she's into men.
Let's get back to serious stuff. After the nuclear apocalypse I had been sending messages using Shortwave Radio. There were a few communication systems like Satellite; Lan, Radio but I used Shortwave Radio to keep my location hidden.
Shortwave radio transmissions can travel long distances and are less affected by atmospheric disturbances caused by nuclear explosions. If anyone still wants to detect my location then won't get an exact location except an area. In my area there are many bunkers so our location will be well hidden.
Okay, it's not like I became a pro in communication in 4 months. We all have been studying various things for a year since the nuclear threat started. It was a little easier for me because I started computer science or maybe because of Dad. Dad and I used to study together. Dad was in the military but he quit after Grace was born.
Uggh, I miss my dad. He's the reason that we're alive. Alright folks, let me share how our vault works, especially the food situation. We have rations which we can eat for 30 years to 50 years. But they will remain good for 20 to 25 years if our preservation system remains intact.
We farm here though. One of the easy ones is farming mushrooms. Mushrooms don't need sunlight, so they're perfect for bunkers. You gotta keep an eye on the temperature, though. If you're growing oyster mushrooms, you want it a bit warmer. But if you're growing wine cap mushrooms, they like it cooler. You can use insulation or maybe even a little heater or cooler if you've got one.
Humidity is super important for mushrooms. They like it really humid, like 80-90% humidity. You can spray water to keep it humid or use a machine called a humidifier. And don't forget about fresh air! Mushrooms need air to breathe, just like us. So, make sure your bunker has some ventilation, like little vents or a fan. There are a few more which we farm here to talk about but not today.
Ohh, yes the power. How we're handling the power situation. It's not good. Current technology sucks so no unlimited power source. Here's what we use keeping the lights on down here:
First off, we've got renewable energy sources. We use solar panels to soak up sunshine and turn it into electricity and store that energy in deep-cycle batteries for when we need it. But, they only last for a few years, so we've gotta be ready to replace them.
If things get really bad and our renewable energy isn't cutting it, we might need a backup plan. That's where a generator comes in handy. It runs on fuel so we only use the generator for emergencies. So far our solar panels are doing a wonderful job. Plus using energy-efficient stuff like LED lights and not wasting electricity on things we don't really need is helping to last our power storage.
Now, there's some really fancy stuff out there, like these things called Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generators, but they're super expensive. Still in development so yeah we're stuck to current known electricity sources. Only the government has access to them so maybe some of the bunkers have it. They are not unlimited power sources but they can last over a decade based on size. Though not easy to handle and keep the radiation control in case of some accidents.
But there is good news. Surface radiation levels started going down, like, really fast. Some scientists thought maybe big storms caused by the explosions helped clean up the radiation in the air. Others thought maybe the explosions messed with the Earth's magnetic field, and that somehow made the radiation go away. And get this - some people even thought tiny little bugs might've evolved super fast and ate up all the radiation! How crazy is that?
It was like a big hug from nature, saying, "Hey, don't worry, I gotcha!"
I couldn't believe it when I discovered it for myself. I read the radiation level everyday. It's automatic. I just give it a check which is also unnecessary. The program will alert if something changes. It was day 69 when I found this unbelievable reading. At first, I thought our monitoring program was malfunctioning, giving us false readings. I ran diagnostics, triple-checked everything I could, but the result remained the same. I communicated with others and it's the same everywhere. It took us one whole week to believe that the radiation levels were decreasing at an unprecedented rate.
Maybe, just maybe, I would live to see the day when the surface would be habitable for humans again, or at least my kids would. Our initial predictions had estimated it would take a couple of centuries at best for such a scenario to unfold.
Let's talk about sex now. Nicole and I have been having crazy sex for almost a month. Ohh shit, today will be our one month anniversary. Haha, why am I stressing over this? It's not like I have to take her somewhere special. Though I'll plan something smart to surprise her. How about a candle night dinner? Old school but easy to do here at least. Lily will help me with the setup. I don't know why but Lily seems very interested in my love life. She always asks stuff that brother-sister shouldn't share but due to that I'm the only person she considers as friend so I can't blame her for being creative sometimes. Let's share a sexy memory that you guys are waiting for. After the first night Nicole and I slept together, the morning was quite weird.
