Dead Land Journal April 16th 2028

There are a few new faces around here this evening. We got a radio call this morning from a group of people wanting to join out little community. We readily accepted.

Katherine, Billy and I met them at the bridge. There were a few uncomfortable moments as we explained the conditions under which we would allow them onto the island. Our requirements were really quite simple. Everyone was required to submit to an abdominal ultrasound.

Absolutely no exceptions.

There was one man that flatly refused on religious grounds until he realized that he would be left on the other side of the bridge alone and would be shot on sight if he crossed without permission. But it was really his pregnant wife that convinced him. She just simply walked back across the dividing line on the bridge to stand with her husband. He looked down on her eight month belly and sighed. He decided that he would not risk his wife and unborn child's safety for his religious beliefs.

Katherine has recently found an old Vscan handheld ultrasound she was eager to try out. It's rather big for a handheld unit, about the size of one of the original flip style cell phones. But it is pretty rugged. She took each person into a large van parked on the island side of the bridge and spent a few minutes examining them. Each person came back looking somewhat relieved but the pregnant woman was smiling and crying at the same time, so I guess she got some good news or at the very least an absence of bad news.

The total count was three women and four men and thirteen year old boy. He is already checking out Stacy. I am going to have to keep an eye on that. The adults seem eager to join in the community and each one has asked what they can do to help. So I have set some to patrolling and set up a guard on the bridge. The others are out gathering canned goods. The houses and other buildings we have already checked are all marked with a "X" painted on the front doors. The doors are locked up and the keys are in the mailbox. Any houses with broken windows are left unmarked as they cannot be guaranteed safe. Those foraging are ordered not to go into any building that has not already been marked or has any broken windows.

Right now things are going well enough that I am planning to have Kyle fly me up to Beaver Island. It is just a little over a hundred miles so it won't take long. Looking forward to meeting Elliot and seeing how they are set up, maybe get a few ideas.

© 2009 R. Keith McBride