JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING: This is supposed to be a cute recipe for peppermint icebox pie, complete with adorable pink pictures. Very suitable for the snowy holiday season. However, the first snow storm of this winter has knocked the power out at my house, and I will confess 1) the recipe pictures are stored on my laptop, not my phone and 2) composing a blog post on the aforementioned phone is really, really hard for me!
For example, I'm composing this using voice to text, because my single finger typing speed is about 20 words per minute. Which means my daughter, who is sharing the warmth of the kitchen wood stove with me, keeps snickering.
Also the size of the text keeps shifting on me, and disappearing behind the keyboard. Guys, I think my phone has gained sentience and is taunting me because I'm old.
So please consider this an invitation for a general Sunday chat. You can tell me what you like to do when the power is out, or if your smartphone is out to get you, too. I'll keep you updated as to whether the Maine Millennial and I survive.
Oh, dear . . . having the power out is truly a dreadful thing. You have my deepest sympathy . . . .
ReplyDeleteI grumble [a LOT] when the power goes out . . . then I get out the percolator so that we can have hot coffee. And I curl up beneath a pile of quilts and read [or sleep] . . . .
My phone is ALWAYS out to get me. The girls chuckle, I’m sure, but they tell me how to fix whatever problem I’m having, so I suppose it’s a fair trade. [And my speech-to-text NEVER gets it right, so I have to correct a gazillion little misspellings or strange words the phone just randomly sticks into my text.]
Power-out days eventually turn into "ah, the power's back" days [very soon, we hope] . . . . now we can all look forward to that yummy-sounding peppermint icebox pie recipe getting posted another time . . . .
I feel your pain, Julia. Ottawa gets a lot of freezing rain and add strong winds, and presto, we get a power outage. But it was just heavy normal rain and strong winds that caused a power outage here that Sunday night in November when the Back Room had several Reds participating and I missed it (GRRRR)!
ReplyDeleteSince I live in an apartment, I sadly don't have the luxury of a fireplace or wood stove as an alternate power source.
Depending on how long the power outage lasts, it means either eating refrigerated foods before they spoil or ordering take-out. Luckily, our power outages have only lasted a few hours so far. I missed some historical ice storms that caused Ottawa to lose power for WEEKS in January!
LOL about the sentient smartphone! I am impressed that you were able to even type and post this short blog entry with it. And I have never tried the speech-to-text function on my phone.
Ugh. Power here in SE Virginia likes to go out in summer during hurricanes (although it has been known to happen during winter nor'easters as well). Summer without air conditioning and refrigeration sucks! And in spite of a box full of flashlights and batteries, we never seem to have matching sets. Go figure. Good luck to you and the millennial - and stay warm!!
ReplyDeleteIsn't it strange how that happens with the batteries and the flashlights? Happens here in Texas, too.
DeleteLast year I found my batteries had leaked, not fun.
DeleteYou are lucky to have wood stoves! This is the first house I've lived in in New England with neither fireplace nor wood stove. And there's no room to add one, so power outages in winter make me very nervous.
ReplyDeleteWhen the power was out for about forty eight hours a few years ago, it was spotty around town, and the Friends Meetinghouse (only a mile from my house) had power. Several of us Quakers went there to charge up and warm up during the day.
I hope yours comes back on soon!
A gas generator would be very handy for you and Hugh, Edith.
DeleteI know, and we've talked about it.
DeleteNo fireplace or stove, Edith??? Wah!!!
DeleteHaving lived both in Tornado Alley and to the left of the San Andreas fault, I feel ok about losing power. Mostly because I can count the times we have in the past twenty years -- twice -- and only one lasted more than a few hours. That one the entire eastern seaboard was affected, but it was August, and we survived. I don't remember what we lost in the way of frozen foods, but probably not much.
ReplyDeleteBack in the day, when I lived on the Navajo Reservation in Arizona, power outages were routine. We had a kerosene stove and a multitude of lamps. It was sort of fun as I recall, sitting around the table playing Monopoly in the glow of an oil lamp, actually talking to out two pubescent boys.But it wasn't fun if I were at work. The hospital emergency system wouldn't support the incubators for the babies. We took blankets out of the warmer and packed them around the little ones, bagged the ones on ventilators, and prayed for the lights to come back on. Forty some years later, I hope things have improved.
Here we have a fireplace and lots of wood, although I can't say much for the efficiency of heating the house that way. And we have two dogs. Maybe we should consider getting a third for those cold nights?
Julia, stay warm and don't wear the battery out on your phone. xox
Ann, I remember that 2003 blackout. I think it affected 50+ million people in the US and Canada. I was working downtown at the University of Toronto and when we figured out it was a widespread outage, taking the subway or streetcar back home was a no-go. I walk a lot but that was a 12 mile walk back home in the August heat. Stranded electric streetcars in the middle of many downtown intersections. We were without power for 3 days so the food all spoiled.
DeleteAnd I missed the worst winter blackout to hit Toronto when I moved to Ottawa in December 2013. I left Toronto during the storm. Ottawa had 40 cm of snow (1.5 feet) but Toronto had a multi-day ice storm and was without power for a week.
Wasn't that because of a hurricane that hit the Gulf Coast and swung up through the country? It was a monster storm. We hooked up a gas generator and plugged in our fridge, and Steve ran long extension cords to the homes of two neighbors. Weirdly, our power came back on, but there's didn't, so we kept their A/C and refrigeration going, between the generator and our own electricity, since our neighbor was on oxygen for emphysema. Their power was out for eight awful days.
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DeleteHmmm, not sure whether it was a hurricane or just the result of an extended heat wave straining the electrical grid in N. America. I remember the point of origin was a failure of equipment at First Energy in Akron, Ohio that cascaded throughout the NE.
DeleteJulia, hope your power is back on.... did you get the snow-extravaganza they were predicting?
ReplyDeleteI remember a summer blackout a few years ago. Not hot water. No stove. I'd thawed chopped meat. I thought: we'll barbecue! So I went into the yard, set up the coals, stuck in the starter. Plugged it in. And waited...
Oh, how we take for granted the things we rely on! I hope you found matches.
DeleteOh, Julia, I am so sorry you lost power and hope you get it back quickly. The storm was here before it went to you. A few miles yesterday, meant the difference between rain and snow. We got a bit of snow, the largest flakes I've ever seen, but then it rained again and they were gone. There are lots of outages in towns that got that wet, heavy snow.
ReplyDeleteWe've been in this house since the spring of 1984. We have lost power a few times, twice for more than a week. When it happens in summer, not much we can do. We have flashlights and candles but spoiled food quickly becomes an issue. In winter, we have gas heat, gas hot water, a gas stove, and in-ground gas grill, so, the only thing we can't use is the oven, which is digital. The heat works on gravity if you manually open the valve so the heated water comes up through the baseboards. Therefore we have, heat, hot water, and cooked food. Also in winter, the porch can serve as a refrigerator.
The last time we lost power, we played scrabble every night. We read during the day and I cooked on the stovetop and on the grill. We still have lots of camping equipment so the percolator was the first thing we looked for when the lights went out. It was mostly okay. Friends came over to warm up. The worst thing was that we had to empty the sump pump every 2 - 3 hours using 5 gallon buckets. We carried them from the basement up to the half bath on the ground level and dumped the water down the toilet. Each time we had to carry up between 25 - 30 gallons of water from the basement. We had to wake up in the middle of the night to empty the sump at least 2 times. 8 days!
Oh my goodness, Judy. Dealing with food in the fridge during a power outage is one thing, but dealing with incoming water via the sump pump up multiple stairs is quite another. What a thing to have to contend with.
DeleteAmanda, it was so funny for a few days, we just laughed as we carried those huge buckets, then it got old and we started to crab at one another. Still laughing at the absurdity. Such horrible things happen to people and their homes, honestly, this was just not in that category.
DeleteI get about a hundred blankets, all the cats, portable chargers and my portable devices and camp on the couch with books and puzzles loaded on the devices! Movies too!
ReplyDeleteIn the part of Connecticut where I live, we rarely lose our power, except in major storms. When I lived about thirty miles from here, power outages were a regular occurrence. My sister lives in one of the towns that has power outages frequently. It’s especially challenging right now, because she’s a teacher who is teaching remotely due to Covid.
ReplyDeleteI hope you get your power back soon, Julia!
DebRo
Julia, I hope you get your power back soon. I try to keep all my electronics charged to 100% and fresh batteries and blankets at the ready.
ReplyDeleteDru, first thing we did when we got the forecast was plug in our electronic gizmos and full up the jugs of water!
DeleteI think I am on the edge of your storm Julia. It was very windy during the night and it is now snowing. A good thing I can stay home and I have power.
ReplyDeleteHope you get yours soon. Stay safe.
Housebound in December before Christmas, with a million things to do AND a dog that can't hold it forever. My deepest sympathy to you and the MM.
ReplyDeleteAtlanta ice storms always happened overnight. I would wake to a freezing silent house in a silent world. After sunrise, the tall, skinny loblolly pines started to crack and break, the top half of the tree thudding to the frozen ground. I would take the dog through the basement to the outside door, and throw down beach towels so she could navigate the inch of solid ice. The kids burrowed under their covers and went back to sleep. Next up: de-icing our ski jump driveway, chipping and hacking the ice layer with a heavy snow shovel. We had moved to Atlanta from Cleveland and I was the envy of my neighbors--I owned two snow shovels. The kids spent the day eating cold cereal reading and playing cards.
Sending you warm wishes...or do I mean, "wishes for warmth"? You've got this. You live in Maine! You're a pro.
ReplyDeleteJulia, I have been thinking about you while watching the weather report. I know you are an old hand at power outages - just hope it won't last too long.
ReplyDeleteI finally have a real smart phone but trying to type more than a very short message seems to be beyond me.
Power outages have happened a couple of times up at the cottage and the biggest problem used to be the food in the fridge and freezer. Nowadays, the food is still a problem, but now that we've nixed the landline, having power in our smart phones is the more urgent problem. We keep saying that we should buy a solar charging pack for them and, today with your story, Julia, I'm thinking it's time for us to actually get one. The older the phone, the less long the battery lasts. And our phones are old...
ReplyDeleteOn a sort of related note: For those with power and time, check out the Scandinavian series on Netflix called Trapped. Season One is set in Iceland durning a terrible winter storm. So far, the power is on in the little town, but the body is missing and the baddies are on the loose. And I wouldn't be surprised if the next thing is for the power to go out. It's gripping!
Will look that one up, Amanda!
DeleteAmanda, I also recommend Trapped. I watched it a couple of years ago when I still had Netflix (which I cancelled in 2019).
DeleteOh so awful—I am terrified by power outages. When there’s the slightest possibility of one I frantically plug things in to charge and freak out over the freezer and email my manuscript to myself to download it to my laptop. Ahhh. Hoping we all get through this winter—-good luck everyone. Julia —let us know when it’s back! Shows you how much we rely on it.
ReplyDeleteWhen I lived out in the country, we used to get power outages all the time. The biggest problem there was that the well pump ran on electricity, so if we were out of power, we were out of water, too. Fortunately the power was never off for very long. I wouldn't lose water here in town, but the house is pretty much all electric. No land line, electric thermostats and starters on the gas furnace and water heater; stove, oven, fridge, all electric. I do have a fireplace, but few logs. I'd just have to cuddle with the critters and hope it was a short-term problem.
ReplyDeleteAs for your beloved daughter sniggering at your typing skills, I am surprised you didn't go really old school on her and try voice to Millennial to text. Dictate your post and have her type it into your phone!
Oh, and don't you love those moments when your electricity or your internet go out, and you finally struggle up to phone tree to get a recorded voice that says, "You can access our helpline on your computer by going to www. . . Those messages always cheer me right up.
DeleteYeah. Catch 22 comes to mind, Gigi.
DeleteTrying again
ReplyDeleteJulia, I feel for you! My nephews find my texting skills prehistoric, and I never remember to invest in one of those solar or battery-powered chargers until I have need of one. We do have candles and oil lamps and a chargeable emergency light. I also invested in an emergency crank radio with light years ago--after that widespread Eastern power outage. There are similar crank devices that will also charge a phone--if only I could keep the thought in my head long enough to order one!
ReplyDeleteWe don't have as many outages now as in the past--the most recent one was a couple of weeks ago due to high winds topping a very tall pine, which snapped the power line. I was in the back of the house when youngest nephew told me the fire trucks were outside and the side yard was on fire. That was exciting! (Luckily very little damage). Stay warm (and well hydrated!).
Julia, is that an Advent wreath you're using as a light source? Sigh. Writers love symbolism. . . .
ReplyDeleteYes, it is Connie! Since it was already on the table...
DeleteWrote a comment that would not be published.
ReplyDeleteSo Sorry to hear about your power outrage. Hope you and your Millenial are staying warm. No power outrage here though the iPhone and the TV cable are going haywire!
We bought the TV in 2004 and recently we will be watching TV when the channel or the volume changes by itself! We are not sure if it is the TV or that the street tree trimmers did something to the cable outside?
We bought the iPhone 6s in 2016 and it turned out to have inferior battery life! Bow I cannot use it!
Trying to decide whether or not to buy the iPhone 11 or iPhone 12 Pro Max with the best battery life or just go back to the flip phone with text messages.
Diana
Ouch, Julia. We’ve been fortunate over the years. Loss of power has always been a temporary burp, a few hours at most. We even kept our electricity through two hurricanes when much of the city didn’t. Just dumb luck.
ReplyDeleteI was scrolling through my junk mail file last night for the heck of it and found an email I’d been saving in my inbox. I hadn’t even missed it yet. So how did it land in junk as opposed to trash? I haven’t activated Siri or whoever to mess with things. I have to blame my clumsy finger(s) depending on laptop or iphone or wonder if Hal revived.
Oh Julis, I’m feeling cold just thinking about you. I’m glad you have stoves and plenty of wood. We’ve lived through power outages during fire season and had a whole freezer spoil but I’m not sure how we’d keep warm in the winter
ReplyDeleteWe chose a woodburner in our new house, because of bad experiences in the past, and when I was working with the architect I insisted that no plumbing pipes run along the perimeter of the house. No more worrying about busted water pipes in the winter, by golly. The only ones that do are the outside hose bibs, and they all have shutoff valves.
ReplyDeleteGood luck, Julia. I hope the power comes back on quickly. In the meantime, your stove looks cozy, and useful for cooking. Hope you have a French press for coffee. And already-ground coffee! We could last a long time if we at least had our brew.
Julia, let us know when your power comes back on!! Sending you and the Millennial warming wishes!
ReplyDeleteWe do occasionally lose power in the winter here in north Texas, usually due to ice storms. We have gas furnaces but the fans, starters, and thermostats are electric, so no joy there. We can use our gas range top with the help of a lighter, and our gas grill, so wouldn't starve. And we have a wood burning fireplace, emergency lanterns, etc. We've also lost power during tornado season, but in those cases you're more worried losing your house!
Oh, and Julia, I hope someone else can spare you a day for your peppermint ice box pie!
Oh Julia, I am so sorry but so impressed that you can blog on your iPhone and with photos! I too am a single finger typer on my phone, touch typing on my computer. I can't make my thumbs do it on my phone.
ReplyDeleteHere in Atlanta we do get ice storms. Once after a huge storm in 1973 my father had to hike up to the road and flag down the power crews because we lived back in the woods and the lines were down in our woods, not on the road. It was a long dark week and cold. My father slept in front of the fireplace and kept the fire going all of the time. It also took out a small apple orchard in the back. Now that we live in a condo, we never lose power as it is all underground.
We are all thinking warm thoughts for you.
(I had this all done, and pressed the wrong place on the screen. Poof, all gone and now I get to start again.)
ReplyDeletePower outages are the new "norm" here in California during fire season. But that is the summer/fall days when the daylight is longer and we all complain about not having air conditioning.
But it is preferred to power outages in the winter. My new place doesn't have an alternate heat sources I'm not looking forward to the projected power outage for this evening and tomorrow if the wind event happens. Of course fires and evacuations in December is not what one expects but that is what southern California is going through right now. And here I was just about to dump my bags of ice for the winter.
Single finger typing is a pain but it was the only way I could type on my phone and Kindle. Dictating is an adventure when the electronic ears doesn't understand my words.... oh, well. I do have an extra battery for my phone and Kindle that I can charge in my car but not for the new computer I purchased to make life easier during the pandemic. It's my next search. Could the Millennial help you find a source for your laptop and then you can pass it on the rest of us, Julia? Stay warm and dry. Oh, did everyone put out hay and carrots for St. Nicholas' horse?
I live in NYC so we rarely have a power outage and, when we do, it's a BIG deal. I was on the subway in a blackout a few years back and it was a wonderful adventure. Once we got out, we had to walk a couple of miles home, eating ice cream all the way because the ice cream store was giving away pints before they melted. Fortunately, we had a battery operated flashlight/radio and sat on the stoop listening to the Yankees game, eating ices also given away.
ReplyDeleteSo, NOW, can we talk about the plants?
I was too lazy to go out to the woods and cut greens to wire onto my advent wreath frame, so I McGyvered it with succulents and a bit of ivy I'm rooting. They are, technically speaking, evergreen!
DeleteOh Julia, I hate that you are going through a power outage, but I am glad that you and Victoria have that wood stove for some warmth. My daughter has a wood stove that seems to warm quite nicely. On the other hand, I found out the hard way that a fireplace is not a great source of warmth unless you sit almost on top of it. I had read in the paper this morning about some areas in the East getting a major snow event and possible power outages, and I did think about you and wonder.
ReplyDeleteThe worst power outage I've experienced was the major ice storm in 2009 here, and I found out just how cold a house can get when it's below freezing outside. The fireplace did little good. One of the worst parts about it, and those who love their brew in the morning can relate, was no coffee when I got up from the piles of blankets on the bed. It lasted almost a week, and I still shudder to think of it. Those who romanticize being stuck inside during a snow storm with only the glowing fire in the fireplace have obviously never experienced it.
And, my phone. Yes, my phone is definitely out to get me. I have a new phone, the iPhone 12 and haven't finished setting up everything. It does not think very highly of me, I can tell you that. Of course, I am rather inept about using it. I think I hear it laughing at me sometimes.
Julia and Victoria, I hope your power outage is short-lived, and you can once again enjoy the freedom of using your whole house.
Hang in their Julia! We haven't lost power yet in our town in Aroostook County, but we are approaching 1.5 feet of snow and it has been very windy so it's probably just a matter of time. Hope yours is restored soon. Love the kitchen woodstove.
ReplyDeleteI cannot compose anything beyond an emoji on my cell phone and when I do, I'm never sure where it goes. Of course, I almost feel the same way about my laptop!
Worst power outage ever? After Hurricane Irma - lasted a full week and the temps were in the 90s. UGH.
Thought for developers of generators - figure out a way to put UBS charges in them. It would be so practical. :)
DeleteI have several battery powered lanterns (and back up batteries!) so I can still read. Plus, I have an old gas stove that you have to light (no electric ignition) so I can still make tea and cook!
ReplyDeleteThe power is back on! However, the physical cable connecting our house to Time Warner is lying on the snow, so no Internet. Victoria is on the phone with them now trying to make a service call. We'll see how quickly she gets through...
ReplyDeleteAlso, we've discovered we need an old fashioned stove top coffee percolator, since "cowboy coffee" is disgusting.
French press is the answer, with a teapot.
DeleteIn a pinch, Cafe Bustelo instant espresso is wonderful.
Oh, Julia, I can't even. Seriously...I...Can't...Even.
ReplyDeleteI shouldn't have mentioned Nor'easters the other day, a jinx.
ReplyDeleteI'm aware the power can go out in the wind and ice and snow that we get here in Buffalo and am usually well prepared. We have a gas stove and gas fireplace for warmth and hot food with a stove-top glass percolator but during last months outage we neglected to have our phones well charged and our generator needs servicing also. Fortunately it was only out for 24 hours, so was quite bearable. We'll be better prepared next time.
ReplyDeleteI thought of you when I saw the prediction (feet instead of inches of snow). Hang in there!
ReplyDelete