Last week, there was a bad storm here, as in so many other places. Our variant was an ice storm, combined high winds. Trees and tree branches came down and took power lines down with them. We were without power for just over 24 hours, which made me both realize and appreciate a few things.
The hydro guys and electricians were working really hard (around the clock) to get everyone’s juice back, and I appreciate their efforts. They were on top of things.
It’s a very good thing to have a gas fireplace that doesn’t have an electrical ignition. Ours was just wonderful and kept one corner of the house cozy. Because we live in an old house, there are several fireplaces that were built for burning coal. They’re too shallow for wood fires and sit unused, but (as usual after a power failure) I’m wondering if another one should have a gas insert put into it so we can have another source of heat when the juice is out. Hmm. I also thought about what it would have been like to live in our house when it was new. (Here’s a hint – much more chilly!)
It’s amazing how quiet the house is when there isn’t any power. There are so many little motors and pumps running at any given time. I don’t notice the sound of them, until they’re silent. My friend actually said she knew the power was out in the middle of the night because the silence of her house woke her up!
I’m getting really good at freezer triage. I made a list of what I knew was in the small freezer, and put it in order-of-eating. We ate well that day, thanks to the barbeque, and our wastage was minimal overall. The larger freezer in the basement stayed shut and remained cold, so everything is fine there. Plus we learned that frozen spring rolls can be successfully barbequed. Live and learn!
I discovered that the new cell phone (which isn’t that new) doesn’t know everything it needs to know. I’ll have to teach it more email addresses.
Of course, we got nothing done that day other than talking to electricians and moving tree chunks to the boulevard for the city to pick up, so it’s great to have everything more or less back to normal. There’s no better way to start the day than with a hot cup of coffee and a hot shower!
But you know, I’ve never written a scene in a book with a power failure. Hmm…
Deborah Cooke: Author 