Disaster Kit - for the home

Part of good disaster preparation is having a disaster kit.  One for home, work and vehicle.

There is no right set of 'stuff' for a disaster kit.  As there is no standard container to store it all in.  Some like the flexibility of a backpack, which exemplifies the concept of a "Go-bag", others like a large duffle, or even a plastic bin with supplies.  You can get rather flexible and make a multi faceted approach and have multiple levels of disaster kits and go bags to be prepared for the right response.

I will separate these kits into three different categories.  A shelter in place kit, a go kit- for the quick evacuations and an everyday carry kit.

Today I will discuss the shelter in place kit.


Shelter In Place:
This kit should consist of what you need to sustain your family for nearly any potential threat you deemed plausible in yesterday's threat analysis.  At a minimum food, water, medicine, clothing, important documents and means to sustain yourself for a minimum of 5 days.

Since this kit will most likely be at your permanent home, we can look at your options and have some additional flexibility.  Hurricane Sandy was an event that lasted for 10-14 days.  Some select folks were without power for 17 days.  Why not expand your selection to cover at least 2 weeks, if not 3 weeks.

Let me start with water.  As mentioned earlier, a good rule of thumb would be 1 gallon per person per day.  A family of 5 would need 5 gallons a day.  Don't forget the pets!  Now water weights about 8 pounds per gallon, so a day's worth of water for this family is about 40 pounds.  Not exactly portable. A 21 day supply of water is not exactly practical as well.  A twenty one day supply is over 100 gallons.  Some people will be able to have 2 55 gallon water containers in storage.  If you have the space and inclination two 55 gallon drums stored properly will provide you a solid 3 weeks of water for a family of 5.  For most space is an issue and storage of 105 gallon jugs or barrels is not always practical.  I always suggest having at least 35 gallons of semi portable water in hand in the form of 5 gallon 'water cooler' jugs and gallon jugs and smaller bottles. This will get you through the first week when disruption is presumably at its highest.  So where do you obtain the remaining 70+ gallons? There are a few options.  As the disaster unfolds, or the day before fill your tub(s) with water, fill large pots with water and other clean containers.  You can instantly create over 100 gallons of temporary storage in just a few minutes. Of course water in the tub must be sanitized before use.  They do make once plastic liners that store in a medicine cabinet you can deeply and fill your tub that reduces the risk of contamination, so that may be an option for those grossed out thinking of drinking from their tub.  As for filtration, a chemical treatment of 8 drops of bleach per gallon for 30 minutes works, as do ceramic gravity filters or micro pump filtration systems.  Each have pros and cons.  But clean water in a disaster is a lifesaver.  A rain barrel to collect run off, storage of tub water, and local collection are three viable ways to obtain more water.  The risk with local collection is contamination.  This water may have petrochemical and pesticide residue from recent storms or disaster events, may have high levels of bacteria and other contaminates.  It should be boiled and filtered and run through carbon before considered safe.

On to food.  Most people may have a variety of packaged foods, and canned goods in the house.  No one likes to go shopping daily for meals.  Take a look around and see what your working inventory is.  Then see what it takes to prepare it.  Will you have an over? Stove? Microwave? The realistic answer is not likely.  Without power your gas stove may operate, but in extreme disaster your gas may be off as well.  You may need to cook on an outdoor grill or camp fire.  Do you have the requisite utensils for doing this? One can make a simple block/brick outdoor oven with some bricks and/or cinder blocks, but if you do not have them set up beforehand they will do you little good.  A propane grill has a finite operating time and is only as good as the last time you filled it up.  Camp stoves have limited power and also require fuel on hand.  All are viable short and medium term solutions and are easy and common enough to have on hand.  Just be sore your camp stove has spare fuel, your grill is topped off and you have practiced and planned for use of a ire pit or make sift block stove outdoors.

The food you do have may still require additional processing.  Like a bender or refrigeration.  Those food items would generally be off the table.  But things easily prepared with water (from your supply), that require merely heat to prepare, or better yet no heat are ideal.  Since perishables will spoil rather quickly it is good to have some long life foods on hand.  Canned goods are excellent.  Just be sure to have at least 2 manual can openers!  Jar foods and home canned products are also excellent.  Keeping these items as part of your regular pantry and restocking when you use will ensure freshness and ensure they are products your family actually will eat.  It does you no good to stock up on 500 pounds of rice and peanut butter if your family hates both. Some typical good storage foods include canned vegetables, fruits, meats, and sauces.  With a nice pot of boiling water, dry pasta or rice mixed with a can to two from the pantry ca make a simple meal for a family.  A simple griddle over a fire and biscuit mix will allow for griddle cakes or similar even without dairy.

Along with your pantry storage have a dedicated supply of additional canned and dry products.  Include simple pleasures for kids and yourself like chocolate, granola bars, cookies as well.  But primarily focus on the nutritious foods and not junk.  These should get rotated at least annually an again be foods your family will consume.  For a family of 5 for 21 days consider at least 1 can of vegetables, fruit and meat/soup per day.  That is 15 cans of food per family per day. If you figure your pantry lasts 1 week, then you can gain another 7 days with 105 cans of food.  This sounds like a lot but you would be surpassed how much space it really takes.  A can of chicken, or corn is not huge.  They can be stored in crates in the basement or underneath beds or on the bottom of closets.  Ideally where they will not be exposed to excessive moisture, heat or cold.  You can get over 450 cans of food under a twin bed single stacked.  In slide out plastic totes you can store well over 1000 cans.  To round out your storage some bags of beans, rice, pasta and other 'dry' products can supplement any canned meals.  You can eat quite well and have plenty of variety using nothing but dry foods and canned foods. It may not be ideal for ever, but for the type of disaster we are preparing for it would sustain you just fine.

There is also long term food options.  Many companies make and sell freeze died, or dehydrated foods that last for 5-20 years.  These can be single ingredients or entire meals.  Some brands are better than others and some meals or combos work better than others, but they take minimal space and can feed your family well in an extended crisis. Also consider MREs.  These are not the C Rats of old, but are self contained, often available with chemical warming units, that provide a days or meals worth of nutrition in a vacuum sealed kit that stores for 3-7 years.  A case typically has 12 meals with 1200-1300 calories.  That one case which is a bit bigger than a shoe box could sustain your family of 5 for 2-3 days.  Not gourmet living nor as satisfying as a full meal but could get your though a rough patch before services are restored.

A combination of pantry items, dry goods, canned goods, long term storage and MRE make for a well rounded kit.  Be sure to have on hand items like beef jerky, granola bars, fruit (for vitamin C) and vegetables in cans and dry.  When local supermarkets hold can sales and the like you can stock up easily for a relatively low cost and be more prepared to weather out a disaster at home.

In addition to water and food you need to account for your shelter.  Your dwelling may have minor dame.  If it sustained more tun minor damage you may consider evacuation which will be covered later this week. Items to have on hand for your kit at home would include tarps, plastic sheeting, duct tape and half sheets of plywood.  These can easily and quickly path leaky roofs, broken windows and minor damage.Even the most tool inept can clumsily seal a window with plastic and duct tape.  For those more handy, your basic tools can offer more advanced quick repairs.  Just realize power may be out and your collection of battery powered drills, saws and such will not work for long.  A good old fashioned hand drill, hand saw and screw driver still have a place in this world.  Tarps and cord (any weather resistant rope or cord, many like 550 paracord as it has many others uses as well) can help create shelters or patch up existing ones.  I prefer grommeted tarps as they standup to wind and abuse better.  While your tool kits and disaster tool preps do not have to be with your shelter in place kit they should be accessible and identified in advance.

Personal items and medication and first aid  Every house should have a nice assortment of first aid items for everyday use.  If you don't then you are already behind the curve on this.  Basic materials would be bandages, sterile gauss pads and wrap, elastic bandages, antibiotic cream and ointment, lip balm, disinfectant, rubbing alcohol and assorted over the counter medications for  family to treat pain, fever, allergy,  cough and cold as deemed appropriate.In addition a dedicated kit should go with your disaster supplies.  It should contain all of the above in addition to some more robust bandages. You may not have 911 service immediately after a disaster, so the more severe lacerations or even a fracture may have to be dealt with at home.  Having additional gauze wraps, bandages, trauma pads, cardboard and foam splits and triangular bandages should be in the kit.  Also a huge factor is mental preparedness and training.  At the absolute minimum have a good book on first aid in your kit.  You can learn as you go.  But be proactive and take a first aid and CPR class.  Better yet get First Responder, CERT or EMT training.  You can be a valuable resource to your family and community that way. Different levels of first aid and medical kits will be covered in another day.


We have now covered water, food, simple shelter and simple first aid items.  Next is clothing.  In the northern climates be sure you have plenty of warm clothes and blankets.  You may find yourself without heat for days to weeks.  Thermal undergarments, layers, sweaters, head covering and goo socks all will make life more comfortable.  In more hot climates loose fitting yet protective garments is critical.  Related is loose clothing that protects against insects.  In a serious disaster the insect population may spike and your risk the spread of disease. Protective clothing to minimize mosquito and other biting insect access and good bug spray are a must. A comfortable person is far more mentally prepared to die out adversity than a cold/hot miserable person.

Most of these items you may already possess.  Take the time to inventory your food, water, medical supplies and tools and have a plan as to where you can store more and gather the essentials together for your shelter in place kit.

Do not forget important documents.  A USB key of scanned important documents is great, but also copies or even originals of wills, insurance papers, power of attorney, passports, birth certificate, etc should be protected yet available for immediate access in the vent of evacuation.  I like to scan all of these documents including banking and credit card info and keep an encrypted USB stick and have my copies/originals as needed in water proof sealed bags ready to go.  A simple fire rated safety box can protect them from fire and water, especially of they are double wrapped in sealable document bags and is easy to grab and go should you need it.  Redundant off site storage is valuable. Scans of less critical items can be stored in secure 'cloud' space, safe deposit boxes (keep in mind you do not always have access here) and with trusted family members in different geographic regions.

Last for this topic is communication.  As cellular and land line and internet may be disrupted, especially locally and for incoming calls yo need a communication plan.  An out of state/area person of contact is a great idea.  Make someone or someones outside your local area a point of contact.  You need to get word to them and they will disseminate this info to all other friends and family.  Arrange these numbers to be shared in advance.  Be aware in this digital age cell phones are more common than land lines.  In all likelihood both types of phone will be disrupted for various reasons.  Land lines are vulnerable to physical pole and line damage from high winds; cellular systems are easily overloaded and require constant owed as does your handheld phone.  Cordless phones will not work without power, so have a back up corded phone s well.  For family locally that are out and about like at a job or offsite when disaster hits make pre planed methods of contact.  Be it the outside contact person or other pre arranged method.  For example, if a is aster strikes and I am commenting I will try to make contact between 4-5 PM and again 9-10 PM or every 5 hours until you get through.  This helps alleviate some fears if someone cannot get in touch immediately and you know when to expect communication so you can spare battery powered devices until those windows.

This information is all disaster prep 101. Preparations can get far more involved and have layers upon layers of contingencies.  Before we get to those levels we need to ensure the basics are covered.

Planning for the unknown

This will be part of a series of articles dealing with preparedness.  With winter storms approaching much of the Eastern US and a holiday weekend approaching it is a great time to review basic concepts for being prepared.

Whether you believe in a zombie apocalypse or just want to be prepared for the next large scale power outrage, having a plan and some basic items is critical.  What you basic needs are doesn't change and many of the basic three - food, water and shelter are rathe generic for any type of disaster.

Your first step is to take stock of your potential threats.  I call this the threat analysis.  Every location is subject to a different threat analysis. I like to break this down further into natural, man made and technological disasters.  Natural would be anything like hurricanes, wildfires, floods, tornados, earthquakes and the like.  Man made could be as simple as a car hitting a critical utility pole, to a terrorist attack consisting of a dirty bomb, to a civil unrest and riot situation.  Technological can be caused by either of the previous two types but lies more in a failure of critical infrastructures and technologies we all depend on.  Examples include cell phones, electricity and running clean water.

Hurricanes Katrina, Sandy and Irene all have taught us not to take for granted getting 'help' quickly and how severe the damage may be.  Those living with the risk of tornado or earthquake know all too well how quickly it can all change in mere seconds.

So a few reminders.  Our government- both local, county, state and federal have some responsibility to managing disasters, responding to them and providing support from them.  We as citizens cannot wholly rely on them to support us.  For a host of reasons, aid may be delayed by hours, days or even weeks.  While your issue is the center of your world, there are hundreds of other immediate situations and limited resources to deal with them all.  Even a simple winter storm can delay critical services like EMS, fire and police response.

Threat Analysis
●Identify most common disasters that occur●Identify possible hazards with most severe impact●Consider recent or historical impacts●Identify susceptible locations in the community for specific hazards●Consider what to expect from disruption of services

From this you can start to develop a plan of what you need to keep you and your family protected. You may have a zombie defense plan or merely weather related plans, but should the unexpected happen, any plan will benefit you and your family. You should now develop a disaster plan.  This is a written plan detailing the basics of what you need to do for the various threats you felt needed to be addressed.  Some questions to ask are:
●Where will you meet family members? ●Who is your out-of-State “check-in” contact?●Will you have an extended stay? Shelter in place? Evacuate?●How will you escape your home? Workplace? School? ●What route (and several alternates) will you use to evacuate your neighborhood?●Do you have transportation?●Did you practice your plan?

These are just some basic questions to ask yourself.
Consider special needs cases like sick and infirm, chidden, elderly, and pets.  These factors should be tarn into account. You should have easy access to important documents like passports, wills, banking information, property lists, insurance papers, mortgage documents, birth certificates, etc.  Often a digital and encrypted off site storage can provide an excellent backup.  Do not rely on home protection alone, or even keeping them in a safe deposit box.  In a large scale disaster that safe deposit box may be unavailable. 

The three main killers in a disaster are shelter, water and food.  You cannot survive long without all three.  You can plan to shelter in place - your home or apartment, but you have to have backup plans in the case of home loss, or having to evacuate.  Your vehicle is another shelter in place option.  Getting stuck in the snow along an interstate with 3 kids is a problem.  For an hour or two you may just have some frayed nerves.  For 8 hours you have real needs for bathroom, food and possibly medical needs.

The first step after your disaster plan is your disaster kit.  Keep one in your home, vehicle and place of business.  The primary and most extensive should be the one in your home.
 1. Important documents and cash.
2. Water - 1 gallon per person per day for 5 days minimum.
3. Means of filtering additional water and storage. A simple hand filter, bleach, etc.
4. Non-perishable food for the family for 5 days minimum and means to prepare it.
5. Season and disaster specific clothing and footwear.
6 Medications and personal items.
7.Battery powered flashlight and radio with spare batteries
8. First Aid kit
9. Signal Whistle for help
10. Dust mask, heavy gloves
11. Wrench and simple tools to turn off utilities and perform basic functions
12. Manual can opener
13. Written disaster plan with contact numbers
14. Something to do - books, dominoes chess.

Keep in mind the Katrina disaster lasted for week.  Hurricane Sandy lasted for days before services returned to normal. 

Ask yourself could you and your family survive with no power (including heat, water, refrigeration, etc.) for the next 7 days? What if you couldn't purchase any goods for the next 2 weeks? This is possible if there was an infrastructure problem or computer problem with the Nation's telecom and payment processing.  Hurricane Sandy was cash only for a full week in most places.  If the local grocery store and pharmacy couldn't accept debit or credit cards would you ave cash on hand?

These are just some simple questions to make you think and start planning.  Subsequent posts will detail more specifically what steps you take to get on the road to basic preparedness levels.

FEMA suggests the following at a minimum:

FAMILY SUPPLY LIST

Ready Kids & The Federal Emergency Management Agency present:

Family Supply List

Emergency Supplies:
Water, food, and clean air are important things to have if an emergency happens. Each family or individual's kit should be customized to meet specific needs, such as medications and infant formula. It should also be customized to include important family documents.

Recommended Supplies to Include in a Basic Kit:
- Water, one gallon of water per person per day, for drinking and sanitation
- Food, at least a three-day supply of non-perishable food
- Battery-powered radio and a NOAA Weather Radio with tone alert, and extra batteries for both
- Flashlight and extra batteries
- First Aid kit
- Whistle to signal for help
- Infant formula and diapers, if you have an infant
- Moist towelettes, garbage bags and plastic ties for personal sanitation
- Dust mask or cotton t-shirt, to help filter the air
- Plastic sheeting and duct tape to shelter-in-place
- Wrench or pliers to turn off utilities
- Can opener for food (if kit contains canned food)

Clothing and Bedding:
If you live in a cold weather climate, you must think about warmth. It is possible that the power will be out and you will not have heat. Rethink your clothing and bedding supplies to account for growing children and other family changes. One complete change of warm clothing and shoes per person, including:
- A jacket or coat
- Long pants
- A long sleeve shirt
- Sturdy shoes
- A hat and gloves
- A sleeping bag or warm blanket for each person

Family Supply List (continued)

Below are some other items for your family to consider adding to its supply kit. Some of these items, especially those marked with a * can be dangerous, so please have an adult collect these supplies.
- Emergency reference materials such as a first aid book or a print out of the information on www.ready.gov
- Rain gear
- Mess kits, paper cups, plates and plastic utensils
- Cash or traveler's checks, change
- Paper towels
- Fire Extinguisher
- Tent
- Compass
- Matches in a waterproof container*
- Signal flare*
- Paper, pencil
- Personal hygiene items including feminine supplies
- Disinfectant*
- Household chlorine bleach* - You can use bleach as a disinfectant (diluted nine parts water to one part bleach), or in an emergency you can also use it to treat water. Use 16 drops of regular household liquid bleach per gallon of water. Do not use scented, color safe or bleaches with added cleaners.
- Medicine dropper
- Important Family Documents such as copies of insurance policies, identification and bank account records in a waterproof, portable container

That is a minimum recommendation.  A longer shelter in place situation would require additional food and water. Following a disaster it may be many days before basic services are restored.  And while helpers may start up in your area, wouldn't it be preferable to shelter in place at home?

Ode to a Jellyfish

Ode to a Jellyfish 

I was stung by your beauty today,

Ardour and ache so hard to convey,

Traps focused to invisible shrill,

Left stopped shaky stunned wonderstruck still.

A rose's thorn bites with its pressure,

No life exchanged with feel inside her,

But you, adrift, Brownian at sea,

Mingled a wave from your soul with me,

A toxic quiver 'leased in my veins,

With more blitzlieb than Cupid's best pains.

I shall ever aftertaste that fruit,

Forbidden me, this clay plodding brute.

Such passion, even before my eyes,

Spied perfections of form make their rise.

Your sphere. Osmotic. Undulant. Pure.

Blue angelwing glow, ascendent lure,

Lemniscate patterns traced 'cross your top,

Distractive grace of tentacles drop.

Injured, I should have swum for the beach,

But all, I confess, longed deeper reach.

Would I trade away a life for this?

One parlous tryst? One undersea kiss?

Aether's flesh charge up me become you,

Feed me your venom, philter and dew,

Come love me in poison that livens,

Come drown me in potion that drunkens.

When lovers love, with eyes the eyes gaze.

A touch touches touch, as two skins graze.

To smell one other's smell, nose rubs nose.

To taste all that tastes, another kiss flows.

But while I float with your drifts'n hovers,

We're giv'n no chance to tread as lovers,

Eons have left us no sense we share,

No kiss, no caress, no word, no stare.

Oh, to've met you on earlier sand,

'Fore mammals betrayed water for land,

Epochs where such a love might carry,

Embraced in lost time's station'ry tarry...

No such strand, alas, hath destiny,

To rend me from Land and you from Sea.

Still, I'll build castles of sand, and more,

Kingdoms for you! I wait on the shore.

James Clarage; Beachhouse; Crystal Beach, Texas; August 30, 1992.

clarage@rice.edu

Trematode: A Penis-Eating Parasite

There are many things in this world you do not want to encounter. For example the Candiru fish which lodges inside the urethra. Or perhaps something nasty like Ebola.  Some parasites live in the mouth - think Isopods in the mouth or tongue, or parasites in the intestines.

Today, I'm going to write about another parasite that eats not the tongue, but--get ready to cringe, guys--phallus.

Fortunately for us men these parasites prefer the penis of a type of sea snail called whelk.

A whelk. Image: http://en.wikipedia.org

Tremadotes are small parasitic flatworms that use molluscs as their intermediate hosts to reach their definitive host, the vertebrates. And once they end up in a molluscs, for instance a whelk, they will start chomping away the entire whelk gonad while waiting for a fish, for example an Atlantic cod, to devour the whelk. Thus passing along the life cycle to begin all over again.

In April 2000, a group of scientists from Canada decided to evaluate the impact of the parasites on the population of whelks in the northern gulf of St. Lawrence. The study--led by scientist Francoise Tetreault--involved collecting and dissecting 600 whelks and looking at their gonads, and compared the size of their gonads with the distribution of parasites.

The researchers discovered that there were 23% female and 15% male whelk whose gonads were affected. The parasite infected the digestive system as well, but 97% of the infected whelks had their gonads covered by 90% of the parasite.The parasite munched away a large portion of the male penis and changed the once bright color of the female gonad into pale grey.

Picture (B) shows an uninfected whelk. Its penis is labelled as "P".
Picture (D) shows an infected whelk. Look at the "P", and the whelk's sad face.
Awwww.... 

Picture (A) shows the gonad(G) and digestive system(DG) of a female whelk.
Pciture (B) shows the pale grey gonad of an infected female whelk.

Luckily for us there is no parasite that loves eating human penis, just living inside for a while. As for the whelks, they can only watch helplessly as the trematode feasts on their manhood.
Sucks to be a male whelk.But also goes to show you there is always something bigger in the ocean to eat you, and if its not bigger, then its smaller and will still eat you.

Job hunting and arrogance go hand in hand.

Job hunting and arrogance go hand in hand.  I was recently separated from my company due to restructuring after nearly 8 years of service.  As such, I have found myself in the market for a new position.  I have been using the outplacement services provided to me by my former employer and self promotion and creating a marketing plan was one of the first things I had to do.

You see, I am a product and service wrapped up into a tidy package.  I must act much like the Sham Wow salesman on late night TV and convince the buying world of those with jobs open why I am the best candidate for their open position.  "Hire Jonathan now- and as a bonus you will get 4 more weeks of super productivity  and one hidden skill set you never knew you needed."  With self promotion comes some level of arrogance.  Why arrogance? Because to promote oneself you have to start believing the hype and if you are loping for the competitive edge you have to develop a tad of arrogance.

Why am *I* the best for this job, well I'll tell you why.  The meek shall not inherit the position is most cases - at least in this economy.

We also must develop an online presence and social media plan.  The obvious choice is of course LinkedIn.  Now, I mentioned Klout many times on this blog, and I'd like to think I have a decent internet presence.  For competitive job hunting, I need to beef up my presence and get my LinkedIn profile into the best shape possible.  Here is my shameless plug - 

http://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanlowriemba

Yes - click the link and check out my profile.  Really.  I guarantee you will find something to spark your interest. Come visit my profile- take a gander at my skills.  I am an experienced professional offering a distinctive managerial presence across the aquarium, zoological, and pharmaceutical industries.  I excel in team leadership, problem resolution, and technical know-how. I am well organized and disciplined; I possess keen interpersonal skills and a faculty to motivate in a disciplined yet symbiotic manner. I have an aptness with Federal, and local regulatory agencies, and for serving in mission-critical roles. I am recognized for leadership abilities. My diverse background and education brings unique creativity to problem solving under tight resources. I have proven success in executing strategic management goals and improving efficiency and costs.

Now that was a positioning statement.  An elevator speech so to speak.  And of course the reason for todays blog post.  

Most folks do not have a need or desire to come off as self promoting or a braggart  but to sell yourself to the job market you have to somehow get noticed and be the solution to the problem at hand.  

I do not think of myself as arrogant, although I have been called such.  I have often been labeled as arrogant, and blunt by many, especially my peers who sometimes steered away from me.  I do think I am intelligent, capable and a data and facts sort of person, so that aloof presence can radiate some arrogance.  Some people get sweaty palms when nervous, I spout answers to facts and random knowledge tidbits I have picked up over the years. O know what I know and I am not ashamed of that fact.  If I do not know something, I research it and find it out.  That is just me.

But I am more than a walking Wikipedia. I would like to think of myself as a solution rather than a product.  Of course Human Resource departments by design look at employees as human capital and your skill set, motivation, worth ethic all factor into an overall gauge for your performance at accomplishing the job at hand.  Alas I am not sure this is the best way to approach the problem.  More of a chicken and the egg kind of mental mind problem.

Steve Jobs at Apple proved consumers do not always know what they want.  If you had asked the average person in 2005 what an ideal music player should be like you would never have come up with the iPod.  Yet Steve and Apple released a product that quite literally changed the world.  They solved problems rather than filled the needs people thought they wanted.

What is the solution to the perfect marketing plan? I do not yet know. But I intend to find a balance of my own form of humble arrogance and hopefully add in some Steve Jobs like solutions for problems my next employer didn't even know it had and come up with the perfect plan.

I will continue to learn, expand my knowledge base and follow the advice of my outsourcing partners and self promote.

I also find it nearly impossible to be completely arrogant while looking for work.  I have to say I have seen and applied for many jobs I thought were 'perfect matches'. Some I got interviews for, others not even a phone call.  That will take a toll on any ego.  So a thick skin and some level of arrogance is necessary for job hunting survival.  So wish me luck, and know I am not join to pick up a career hawking goods for HSN and I am engaging in the fine art of self promotion and hopefully balancing any arrogance with my other positive traits.

On being a statistic

I am officially a statistic.  

Merck announced on October 1 they were going to eliminate 8500 jobs, in addition to the 7500 already announced, in addition to the slightly more than 25,000 already eliminated.

I am one of said such eliminated positions.  Now in 2013 its a faux pas to say laid off, or downsized, or any other colloquial terms for ceasing employment with your current provider.  My outplacement service provider has urged all effected persons to make an exit statement.  Mine is as follows:

Merck & Co. faces enormous challenges posed by an ever-changing pharmaceutical industry.  They have begun to transform the way it operates by sharpening its focus on core business and reducing operating costs, including headcount. This global initiative will reduce overall headcount by 20% by 2015, including my position. This change has afforded me the opportunity to explore new options. With my record of improving operational efficiency, reducing operating costs, developing new training programs and managing diverse staff and colleagues, my objective is to locate a position as Operations Executive in the pharmaceutical industry.

Of course an exit statement makes it seem so cold and sterile.  And while it is true, I was a victim of bad circumstance and timing and the company truly is struggling, it doesn't feel good to have not made the cut.  I was/am Legacy Schering Plough. I have worked with the company for nearly 8 years, and if what I hear is correct only 9% of us Schering folks remain. So I can take some solace that I was overdue for this change.

I have known since October 1, 2013 that I would likely have this outcome.  I was rather ambivalent about which outcome I desired. On one hand I need the job, the associated pay and healthcare benefits for the family. It is not like I am retirement age or will receive a substantial severance or such. So all logic dictates that I should want the job. On the other side of the coin is the fact that all early indicators point to me being yet another statistic and footmark in a governmental report. My direct management has all but guaranteed my departure via their actions and demeanors. So I have had some time to get 'used' to the idea. 

I also feel like I am on the bow of the Titanic and the iceberg is dead ahead. The problem with cuts, especially in my industry, and more so to research is that the future of the company rests in the hands of the scientists. If you cut too many scientists, or demoralize them, impact their ability to create or otherwise disrupt productivity then you have a self fulfilling scenario of continued pipeline losses and setbacks. So survival today means I dodged the upswing of the axe, but the downswing can come 6 months, or so later.

So which is the optimal outcome? Those left behind have quite the task ahead of them to sort out and get things moving again. The impact to the culture and morale is not repairable. Trusts have been broken and the employees at large generally are in a state of shock. In addition to this phase of the reinvention, legacy Merck employees have lived with the shadow of layoffs for about 6-8 years. My department has been feeling this for 4 years.  The mental wear and tear on all the employees is tremendous. So being cut, while logically a horrible option for me and my family or anyone else whom is cut, may actually relieve stress and frustrations. I am also somewhat excited about the potential for career 3.0. 

I am convinced I have ADD of the career. I have a myriad of interests and love to learn, so I tend to research and learn everything I can about any topic that interests me. So I tend to accumulate degrees, certifications, proficiencies and skills in an eclectic range of subjects. Being forced to go reinvent myself again has some upside. The one thing I am confident of is my ability to accomplish whatever task I put my mind into. I love challenge and impossible odds and proving the odds wrong. So this is just another one of my adventures to adapt to and overcome. It also makes for more interesting blog entries.

The biggest cost of the cuts is the human capital. Merck will lost many great people from all departments and divisions. In my nearly 8 years I have met some very wonderful (and a few less wonderful) people and developed many great friendships. When one adds up the time they spend at work, these work friends often see more of you than your own family does. In my case I was part of a well oiled team. Our team has faced a number of challenges the past 24 months and while already functionally broken up and separated we still manage to accomplish our goals and retain the bond of those friendships.

With the merger I also gained new colleagues and friends who add value to the company and my life. It is these bonds and friendships that will be the hardest obstacle ahead. Those left behind must find ways to keep going with their losses, the increased work and loss of friendships. Many of my colleagues have worked together for 20+ years. Those that know me should know I am not the most social of humans, but I am fiercely loyal to the friendships I do develop. For those that will loose friends of so long, I truly weep for the impact to their lives.

As one who studies organizational design and human capital, I can say regardless of how the dust settles, Merck has a huge hurdle of re-engaging those retained back into the work force and into productivity. The survivors will be mooring those who left, dealing with lost information, and other surprises, as well as increased work loads, more hours and more pressures. All while living under the axe for the future. I do not envy the survivors.

So onward to career 3.0! And if you know of any openings for over educated ex marine biologists with a crazy eclectic skill set let me know.