Reprint from the ACJ - January, 2000
Anxiety and Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome. It's January 2000 and we are all feeling one or both of these maladies. With all the pre-millennial hype only a zombie could have coasted through without some stress. Hopefully, we all made a smooth transition to the 21st century. It is apparent that the "fin de siecle" did cause some folks a bit of concern as they made their way into 2000. As demonstrated by the following, totally real, unsolicited, not made up by me, diary entry sent in by a reader.
Jan. 2, 2000:
Dear diary,
January 1 came and went. Same lame parades. Same mismatched football games. Same hangover. Same telemarketers calling me, pitching a better long distance phone service (makes you wish the autodialers weren't Y2K ready). Sun came up in the east, set in the west. Tomorrow is Monday and I best get back to work.
Things to do:
1. Move ammo, flares and firearms out of flammables area and reset up paint booth.
2. Dig up money and put back in the bank.
3. Fire security guard and return dogs to security firm.
4. Let kids out of shelter and re-enroll in school. Return copies of "Home School Journal" and "Hooked on Phonics".
5. Write work orders on toilet paper until stock pile is reduced.
6. Get used to "Cup o Soup" for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
7. Fill test tank with extra bottled water
8. Build the kids a treehouse out of lumber removed from barricaded house.
9. Put the generator back in the box and sell to a procrastinating survivalist. Sign back up with gas & electric company.
10. Unpack and adapt wood burning stove to heat boilout tank.
11. Sell time-share in Bethlehem, file for collection plate rebate.
12. Send conciliatory letter to IRS. Explain that while writing the first letter you suffered from Pre-millennial Tourettes Syndrome. Feeling much better now.
13. Remove razor wire from shop parking lot.
14. Disassemble gun turret from roof.
15. Sell HAM radio and re-connect phone, cable. Get mail service restarted.
16. Realize that it was just another day, month, new year. Complete with the same hopes and dreams for yourself and your kids, as in other years. Same chance for growth and happiness. Same dawn and sunset, same good and evil. Same s—t, different day.
17. But first, discontinue subscriptions to every magazine, and quit listening to every pundit, that screamed "Y2K Meltdown!"
18. Relax and get back to life.
Looking backward gives us reference
Looking forward gives us hope
Looking outside gives us support
Looking inside gives us peace
Good Luck and God Bless in the New Year!
PS. Save some of that freeze-dried food.
The above article was written by David M. Brown, Chief Engineer of Johnson Manufacturing Company, Inc. and is published by JOHNSON with the expressed approval of the National Automotive Radiator Service Association and the Automotive Cooling Journal. Other reproduction or distribution of this information is forbidden without the written consent of JOHNSON and NARSA/ACJ. All rights reserved.
JOHNSON MANUFACTURING COMPANY
114 Lost Grove Road / PO Box 96 / Princeton, Iowa 52768-0096
Phone 563-289-5123 or Fax 563-289-3825