“Quick, flip the eggs. There’s still enough heat in the pan to cook the tops.”
This was my comment to My Sweet this morning when the power flickered twice and then the house went dark. He was already on it though, he’s smart like that.
You had to know it was going to happen. The weather forecast for overnight last night was grim and it wasn’t supposed to get much better this morning. It didn’t.
It is the first of October and we woke up to a winter wonderland. There’s a good four inches of heavy wet snow blanketing everything and the big, sticky flakes are still falling. No doubt that is what is to blame for the power outage. The tree branches are sagging under the weight of the moisture-laden snow and I’m certain more than one brittle branch somewhere has given way and crashed onto the power line. Fortunately, the bacon was already cooked and the eggs were almost done; I had just finished making my second cup of coffee so I’m adequately caffeinated. That’s usually a good thing for all concerned.
It’s still only October first. I’m more than a little disgusted at the fact that winter has reared its head so early. The temperature is hovering right around zero so it’s sloppy and unpleasant outside. If you’ve ever lived in the north, you’ll understand why I say it’s too warm for dry snow, the kind that just blows off and settles into drifted piles.
This snow will soak you through in minutes. It’s heart attack snow. Again, if you’ve lived in the north, you’ll understand that term too. The snow is so heavy, it can only be shoveled with great effort frequently causing heart attacks in those whose tickers aren’t necessarily in the best condition.
The first text message came through to my phone at barely 7:30 this morning; my oldest son telling me the highways are bad and to stay home if I could. (By 7:30 he was already on the job site.) He’s thoughtful that way, letting me know if the highways are bad so I can give myself extra travel time if I need to go out. Of course, I’ve lived in this country my entire life and am well used to driving in bad weather and on bad roads, but I love that he worries about me. I passed the message on to his brother who was getting ready to go to work himself.
If you don’t have to go out on the roads, it’s not so bad, even with the power out. The house is quiet. The only sounds are the ticking of the clock in the dining room and the snaps and pops of the fire in the wood stove downstairs. The heavy snow outside muffles any sound from passing cars. It’s peaceful.
My iPad still has life so I can write this morning. What I can’t do is housework. Yeah, it’s a real shame. I can’t vacuum or wash dishes (living in the country means the pressure pump is needed to move water through the pipes and remember? The power is off.) I can’t clean the bathrooms because it’s too dark to see in the windowless rooms. So I have to find power-free activities to entertain myself.
Isn’t that becoming a challenge in our electronically connected and power driven lives? The power goes out and the first thing we do is call the hydro company to find out when it’s coming back on. We check how much charge our cell phones and tablets have. No power = no television, no internet, no computers, no video games.
Honestly, it’s a little refreshing, not without challenges, but still refreshing.
Last month we exceeded our internet data plan by at least 30%. (We don’t pay more, our internet just slows down to the pace of original dial-up so there’s no point trying to do much online.) But it means it’s time to re-evaluate how much time we spend with our gadgets. My Sweet asked me how we could possibly be using up all our data allowance? That’s not too hard to figure out. While we are watching television, we are also playing games on our iPads. While our son is upstairs watching something on Netflix, he is also reading fan fiction from an online book site. I don’ even want to think about how many times I check Facebook. It’s like we can’t get enough entertainment value from one thing anymore.
When was the last time you read a paperback novel or a print magazine? How about the last time you did a jigsaw puzzle on the dining room table or a sudoku in a newspaper? When was the last time you pulled out a board game to play with your kids? Probably it was the last time the power went out.
Except for the board game, I actually have the puzzle on-the-go and am in the middle of the latest Harry Potter – the one I thought was a novel but when I picked it up discovered it was a stage play script. It’s like being back in high school and reading Macbeth except I can understand all the dialogue. Since I got the last data usage statement, I’ve been trying to back off the internet usage and away from my devices a bit. It’s harder than I thought it would be. Forced time away thanks to the power outage isn’t a bad thing.
For now, I think I’ll go sit by a window, enjoy the silence, and spend the morning reading … at least until the power comes back on.
Can’t believe we just enjoyed your fish pond a few short months ago. Are the fish still in the pond? I am afraid I don’t have your patience. I get really antsy when the power is off for a while.
I wish we could see some snow but not this early.
Happy Fall!
The fish have moved indoors which is good because we seem to have skipped right past fall and straight into winter. There’s a good 4-6″ of snow in the yard and the temperature is sticking right around zero. It’s a little sad really.
Yes it’s almost puzzle season🤗
Come visit and we’ll have tea and build puzzles 🙂 can’t think of a better way to spend a chilly afternoon!