You have to plan to be self-sufficient to live in the country.
Like, Bill and I have learned to imagine power outages and other deprivations in Oh-No-We-Are-Under-Attack situations.
In over 27 years we have never been under attack out here in the tranquil Virginia countryside.
Nevertheless, we do have frequent power outages and always think we are prepared.
This week, in a howling wind storm, right after dinner when the dishes were stacked in the dishwasher and we were happily watching t.v., the lights went out.
Ho Hum.
We were smugly and snugly prepared!
- A wood stove for cozy warmth
- A generator for lights, television, computers, etc.
- Candles and Flashlights
- A little extra food in the pantry
- Water
Along with the lights, the television went black, and the dishwasher too.
And when I tried to check the electric co-0p status on Facebook, even my computer (on battery) started screaming, “YOU HAVE A VIRUS INFECTION!”
The wood stove was a life saver if you don’t count old Bill traipsing in and out for wood and by the time the fire got going good, the power was restored.
The power was off for only 2 1/2 hours.
But the television stayed dead even though Bill took it all apart. He finally called a techie who told him to put it back together again. That didn’t help either.
The 14 year old dishwasher was dead too, no matter how many buttons we pushed. Fortunately, I don’t think Bill knew how to take that apart so we called an expert in the morning.
But Bill was able to fix my computer by restarting it. My h – e – r – o!
FINAL REPORT FOLLOWING DAY:
The dishwasher man came right out and gave us 2 choices:
- Buy a new dishwasher (which he said we would hate) or
- Wait 4 days for a new control board. I am hand washing dishes for the time being.
- The t.v. is working again because Bill discovered a loose connection.
- My h – e – r – o!
- So much for being prepared!
Life is on track again but I am reminded that “Smugness is folly.”
*Quote by Dor
Virginia Views 