Tuesday, October 13, 2009

Powerlessness

It is now the fifth day in a row where we have had extended power outages during the day; the worst was Saturday when we had no electricity for over 12 hours! This situation has a “good news/bad news” kind of feel to it.

The good news is that we have a propane stove and can cook food and boil drinking water even when the power is off. The bad news is that the food spoils in our electric fridge and we have to throw lots of our groceries out before we get the chance to cook them.

The good news is that we have running water in our home and can even take real showers. The bad news is that the water heater is electric, so those morning showers can get a bit chilly (even in the hot weather!)

The good news is that we have a washing machine at the house and if we put in a load in the morning, the clothes have a chance to dry on the line throughout the day. The bad news is that when the power is out in the morning our laundry continues to pile up. Or, if the power goes out mid-cycle we have to deal with soapy, dripping clothes for an undetermined period of time.

The good news is that the power tends to come back on in the early evening. The bad news is that we’re sleeping overnight and can’t take advantage of it!

I am taking steps to survive these challenges, however, and recently invested in a rechargeable fluorescent lantern (imported from Dubai.) I have a lot of faith in this product as, according to the user’s manual if I “set power switch to the lighten position, then connect it to the pointed electricity power, it will be an excellent emergency light automatically when it is in the shortage of electricity power.”

SWEET! If only I knew what that meant!

No comments:

Post a Comment