December 19, 1994
Currently listening to: Every Day is Like Sunday - Morrissey
Great news! I got my hands on not one, but TWO fallout meters! Thanks to a coworker who previously worked at a nuclear research laboratory, I got some top-notch information on how I could get some of the unused military geiger counters and dosimeters (unfortunately, I can’t share this info with anyone else, so you’ll have to figure it out on your own :P).
One of the devices I got is a handheld geiger counter, so it’ll give readings on the overall decay rate of any radioactive material/fallout. This is definitely useful (and super cool), but even more promising is the dosimeter I got, which has a separate probe attached by wire.
Dosimeters give measurements of the “penetrating” and therefore health-affecting radiation, so they’re far more helpful for determining the risk level of fallout quickly. The probe, however, may be the best part. If I can figure out how to extend the wire it’s attached with, I could set it up to give readings without even having to open the doors!
I spent much of my free time this month figuring out how to execute this idea. I’m not a fantastic electrical engineer, so I had to get some help in making sure I didn’t break the thing while trying to rewire it. I’d hoped I could stick the probe outside of the emergency exit, but there aren’t any gaps between the door and the wall when it’s closed (probably for the best). I could snake the wire underneath the entry door and up the stairs, though.
I needed a lot of wire, but that ended up being what I did. I put the probe itself outside, and made sure it was relatively protected on all sides so it would have less of a chance of getting taken out by an immediate blast.
I can’t believe how much progress I’ve made! All I have left is to finish stocking up on food, bring in bedding and clothing, and set up a small, safe stove unit (a late addition to the plan after I realized room temperature canned soup is… less than appetizing).