Shaky Porridge, Pussycats & Power!

We woke this morning from the depths of another murky sleep. I nodded off after midnight, and didnt wake until I heard the alarm. While lying there assessing the day, I heard distinct knocking. I thought it was someone at the door until I realised the sound was coming from the wardrobe... it was an aftershock - just a teeny tiny knocky one... All good.
Had just boiled water on the stove  - Power RULES! Ok! - when we had a good shake - 4.1 - things went sideways, including the cats, the porridge and the power wavered but didnt go... we huddled in the back door frame, ready to run under the table if we needed to ...whew. Thank goodness theyre so short though.
Once we had untied the knots in our stomachs, our heartrates had returned to normal, we enjoyed some Hubbards Berry Porridge ... the best breakfast ever! Glad to be here y'know.

ITS ALL RUBBISH!
Weve put our rubbish bins out in the hope they will be emptied. We heard on the radio, that the council are trying their best to get things sorted to return to normality. The shake happened for us, the day before our rubbish collection, so our bins were pretty full anyways...
The reality is that we all have varying amounts of broken glass, wrecked items to get rid of... and the city needs to be rid of as much rubbish as possible to alleviate the possibility of disease. That is one of the most serious of subjects, and with the sewerage system down - only 65% of us have water - we need to be  vigilant about this kind of thing...

MEDIA 

I tell you, it is humbling to hear on the radio and the TV about the efforts of others elsewhere. We appreciate it all. Honestly. From our hearts, the words Thank You are very small, but it is meant sincerely.

The fund raising, the food parcels, the help and assistance, the care and concern. Every little bit is important and valued.
If I can offer anything back, it is the advise --- BE PREPARED --- Get organized so this doesnt catch you like it has so many of us. Im fortunate, I was semi-prepared. I intend to do more research, more planning. I will be better prepared because of what has happened in Christchurch in the past seven days.. 

Dont forget your pets... In your survival kit, have cat/dog food. Dried is best of course, and dont forget to estimate water for your pet too when calculating how much water you will need per day. It seems to take cats especially (we dont have dogs) about a week to return, and they really are unsettled with each aftershock, but they come back if you are lucky - My friend Bee has had her cat back after six days. Ours (greedy pigs) came back for food the next day except for Zander who came back on day four. I guess we are amongst the fortunate pet owners. There are always tales of sad things happening. A lady along the road had two Tibetan Spaniels. She has not seen them since the quake. They bolted soon after the quake as their gate must have opened. Keep animals tied in if possible, so if this happens, your beloved animals are not away down the street... Our SPCA are flat out, and their shelters are full of peoples pets waiting to be reclaimed. Tens of thousands of people have left the city... 

Do you know where your furr-babies are?

Well, we are going back into it. The kids are going to help me sort out our kitchen cupboards, and then we are going to see if we can help somewhere down the street. There are only five or six of us left on this street, but we are keeping in touch and eating together... checking on each other. 

Love to all,

Blessings to You and Yours.

EButterfly