The Block: Just Live 'cuz You Can

by Richard Seaman

This is a story that entertains with humor, inspires with courage and determination, and just might cause one to wonder just how close to the future we might be. In the near future the world economy hits bottom and doesn’t bounce. The story of The Block begins in the US government’s struggle and the US economy’s struggle to recover. It was called the Implosion of 2022. For the senior segment of the population, the other shoe dropped when congress passed the Social Security Revision Act of 2025; when the promise of social security was stripped to bare bones and handed over to the states to fund and manage. Some seniors, ill-equipped to face their new reality; the value of their lost dreams was held at the same value as life itself. For others, life was life and just moved on. They tightened their belts, formed communities, and found new ways to thrive using the old ways of their forebears, technology, guile, and a little hustle. Through richly developed characters like Fat Nancy, Big Steve Waterman, Whitey, and the Sanchez Sisters, Doug Richards tells about one community located in Red Bluff, California, created by happenstance under the provisions of the Federal Real Property Repurposing Act of 2025. That community became The Red Bluff Senior Project, aka the Block. Richards looks back at that time with fondness and humor using a compilation of anecdotes to describe the challenges and triumphs he called old glory. This is a story for everyone. Some reader's will simply laugh at the relationships and situations. Others will find common identity. I promise you will be pleased with the reading experience. --Richard Seaman

198 pages, Paperback

First published November 5, 2015

Reviews

[J C Steel · Rating 4 out of 5]

One day, the stock markets crashed and kept on going. A victim of its drive to world disarmament, the United States government finally admitted bankruptcy, and the shockwaves travelled out in many directions. The Block: Just Live ‘cuz you Can is the story of the Baby Boomers in the early 2020s, with the central government placing the responsibility for their care on the states, pension plans vanished, and healthcare slashed to skin and bones, finding a new way to survive and look after each other. Doug Richards and his wife are two of the earliest arrivals in a community made available under the Federal Real Property Repurposing Act of 2025. It will come to be known as The Block.

The Block is a near-future what-if story, showcasing Richard Seaman’s incredibly strong characterisation as he describes how an incredibly motley group of older people band together and find ways to cope without the healthcare, the pensions, and the government support they’d been told to expect all their lives. Doug Richards is the protagonist of the story, and his first-person narration lets you experience his resilience and courage first-hand as he and his neighbours learn to look after themselves, working odd jobs and gleaning crops when they need to, and using barter for skills and equipment around the neighbourhood to make sure that everyone can eat. This book will give you a glimpse of ordinary people in old bodies and extraordinary circumstances, and make you smile through tears.

[Larry Landgraf · Rating 5 out of 5]

THE BLOCK by Richard Seaman is well written, and being a senior myself, quite appealing. I enjoyed this book very much. THE BLOCK is a unique story of survival of old folks when hard times hit. The younger generations can learn a thing or two from those of us who have the wisdom of age and are not afraid of a little hard work. The characters are well developed, and while the story is set in the future, it was very easy to relate to something which could be happening now. There are good lessons in THE BLOCK everyone should learn—never stop working; never give up on life; always strive to improve your situation; life, and everything that goes with it (good and bad), doesn’t end until you die. Life is a never-ending learning process. THE BLOCK will give you a little insight into how important that is in our uncertain future. It is in your own best interest to add THE BLOCK to your reading list today.