12 Hours Without Power

 Last night there was a terrific wind and suddenly there was no power.  We were just getting into bed close to midnight.  We found the flashlight and knew that when the power came back on, we would be surprised with bright lights and loud signals.  But the power did not come back on.  I checked my phone around 1 am which was the only way to know the time and it gave an estimated time of 4:30 am for restored  power.  Then that got pushed back to 2:00 pm. 

 Jim had his annual physical at 9 am but the garage door opener was not functioning of course.  He was able to open the door manually which we had not done in the six years we lived here.  I tried to message him to pick up coffee at Burger King but with the internet down, that message did not go out.  However, he thought of that great idea himself and we got our drug of choice even if we enjoyed it a bit later than usual.  

With Jim gone and my cell phone out of power, I was more careful than usual not to fall.  I would have had no way of getting help until he got home.  It was so dark and disconcerting to walk into rooms and try to turn on a light foolishly!  We had guests coming at 4 pm and I was hoping to bake some almond bars but that had to wait.

11:44:  Suddenly the dining room lights brightened the apartment.  Power!  Hooray!  But we still had trouble with WiFi.  I suggested Jim turn the router off and on and that seemed to do the trick.  However, Xfinity messaged us later to say they restored WiFi at 4:50 pm.  

It was not cold at least  and we didn’t need to cook.  Jim took a quick shower before leaving home—while there was still some hot water in the tank.  I washed up with cold water later.  

How dependent we are on power!  I read my book for a while carefully finding a place where light was coming in a window.  During the night I opened the blinds just to have enough light from the sky to find my way to the bathroom.  

Our guests were at the Hampton Inn and were not aware of losing power.  Jeff said he was also not aware of losing power.  Maybe it was a very localized Barclay Square issue.  But we are glad it is over and we are in touch with the world again!