Dark Ages

How ironic that in Sunday morning's entry I mentioned turning off the TV sound during commercials, etc.  PG&E warned that they might turn off the power in a large number of counties in high wind conditions to be proactive in checking their lines for damage.  (They are being sued for huge amounts for causing a number of fires up north.)  Their warnings came on Saturday when not a leaf was stirring, and then blam! just about sundown the wind came in like a freight train, and we were blasted all night long.  I thought we'd dodged the bullet because we kept power.  Ha.

Sunday evening about 9 p.m. we were thrown into the dark ages:  no light, no sound, no computer, no nothing.  There's no dark quite like up here where there is no ambient light, especially when the moon is waning.  I keep flashlights in every room...this wasn't my first go-round.  There was one immediate problem.  My son Dave had called on my cellphone earlier and my battery was nearly dead.  I'd plugged it in to recharge shortly before the power went out.  Aarrgh.  The cellphone goes with me everywhere and it's like my portable lifeline to the world.  I do keep a landline (at considerable cost) just in case though, thank goodness.

Things started going downhill.  The nightlights that have switched on when we lose electricity started failing, all five at once.  Drat!  Water conservation is a primary concern because the only resource is what is left in the pressure tank, so no flushing, no washing, not much of anything that requires water.  Keep the water bowls full for the all the animals, indoor and out, and take a cup a day to make instant coffee.  Once again I was so glad we'd switched out the electric stove top for propane.  The coffee was a flop because all I had in the cupboard was some very old orange-cappuccino stuff that had been awful in the first place.  Try brushing your teeth with a dry brush and no rinsing sometime.  Poor Bess got sick during the night.  There's nothing like waking up to the sound of a dog on the bed yarking, trying to vomit.  She was successful.  On my pillow.  Washing bedclothes was definitely a no-no.

I remembered that my sister had sent me a battery-powered radio years ago and that I'd never even taken out of the box.  When Steve was alive, we used the downtime to talk, play cards, etc.  I found it in the workroom and dragged it out.  Uh huh.  It is the size of a boombox and it takes eight batteries!  I keep batteries of all sizes on hand, but not eight.  I put the thing back in the workroom.

I was commiserating with Tinka down in Fiddletown.  Amador county, as well as El Dorado county, was hit with the blackout.  We were discussing what we could do with no power and no water...not much.  I said I might have to break down and dust, and she said, "Oh no, get a good book and sit down."  Sounded good to me and, believe it or not, when I checked my stash I found two I had not yet read.  With the aid of flashlight and that great lighted hat Craig made, that took care of Monday, Monday night, and most of Tuesday.  I finished one book and almost all of the other.

How long does it take to check the lines, anyhow?  Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, time just dragged by.  No sound, no light, none of the conveniences we take so much for granted.  And then, ta da! electricity came back about 5 last night!  Run, do not walk, to flush the toilets, fill the water bowls again, and wash the pots and pans that were stacked in the sink.  The water bowl for the wild things was completely dry, so that got filled when I put the kids to bed.

How good it is to come out of the dark ages.