The wakeup call from Dallas recent power outage was the discovery that we have outdated power structures. We are more obsolete than Alabama. Of all the places in the universe, Alabama is one you don’t want to rank below. The local news quoted a utility repairman from Alabama who said our utility structures are inferior to theirs.
We were lucky, our power came on after twelve hours; others were without several days.
During the height of the storm my phone’s battery was on life support, spouse’s about half mast and the backup charger was at zero percent.
In Dallas, during the winter if there is an ice storm or snow alert, everyone heads to the grocery store. The power outage proved to be no different.
We raced to the neighborhood supermarket, for ice, and WI-FI, confident the coffee kiosk, Wi-Fi stations, and bagged ice machines would take care of our immediate need.
Occupants of the Wi-Fi stations avoided making eye contact with hopeful bystanders. Long lines of people surrounded the empty ice machines, eyes glued to their dispensers, waiting for them to yield bags of ice. We returned home ice-less with our dying devices.
Shooting me a look of superiority, as proof of his theory “we might need it one day” my packrat spouse unearthed a portable radio. His glory was short-lived, the radio was alive and well, but the only station it received was a Chinese language station.
The neighbor, that I don’t like much, (but made soup for anyway during her recent illness), hiked to a fast food place, returned with dinner and sent me a text saying SHE had food.
It was a learning experience:
Moving forward, all our electronic devices are going to function at one hundred percent.
We are purchasing battery operated camping gear.
My neighbor does not like my soup.
Tequila and potato chips qualify as survival food.
And, if you have to live in Alabama, you deserve bragging rights about superior utility poles.
