When we turn the clocks forward for daylight savings time, I expect the mornings to be dark again. But this morning it is extra dark. The power is off and as un-green as it is… we live on the grid.
The neighbours have a generator and the sound of juice is only a little worse than the sound of the wind whipping through the trees behind our home. It is loud and scary; the wind, not the generator.
A few years ago we were given a BBQ grill and it sits on the porch out front. I am grateful I can make hot water on a morning like this. Still, I’m a typical North American, I like having power in the house, and popular conveniences like lights, hot water, and internet service. I spend a lot of time on the computer these days, and while I can still write on my laptop, and we do have an old fashion telephone that doesn’t need juice, it’s a little spooky being out of touch and in the dark. I think of the work I won’t get done today and turn to the stack of books by the bedside. (Yum!)
My listening skills perk up in the dark. Peet coming through the cat door, the tapping of my fingers on the keyboard, but it’s really the wind howling that I listen to; waiting for the sound of trees snapping and falling.
I worry that the alder trees our neighbour refuses to cut down, will crash down and cause damage and havoc. The big maples, cedars and fir seem content to sway in the bluster and dark.
When we first moved to the island, power outages were common place. It was never a surprise and our stash of flashlights and candles were ever ready. Over the years, Hydro has cleared most of the culprits and losing power is a rare occurrence now. Still happens (like right now), I feel we are less prepared or perhaps we just can handle the outages with less fanfare.
I’ll mention that I really miss Ken on mornings like this. With Ken away, I need to take care of myself, Peet and the house. We have a house that has jobs for two people. Not one, mostly because one of those people (me) lets the other (Ken) do most all of the hard stuff. Chores like carry wood in and keeping the fire going, And when the power goes out, Ken is the one who boils water on the grill outside for morning coffee and he makes sure the headlamps have batteries that are charged.
It’s the little things that make all the difference in a relationship. Eh?
I was looking forward to posting today on my new blog site, it will have to wait now. When the power is off on Bowen Island, it can be for 5 minutes, 5 hours or fifty. So, stay tuned. I’ve got some wood to chop and some water to carry before I get connected to the world again.

PS. It was only out for a mere 15 hours, so I’m still posting everyday! Yay.