Approximately nine AM; I hear a strange "BOOM!" from somewhere nearby.
It was strange and yet, I've heard it several times before during the time I've lived here.
Then, all the power in the house went off and it was much too quiet.
Realizing what had been the source of the noise, I hurried, as well as I am able to hurry, out the front door, across our yard and far enough out from under our large, shade tree to be able to see the top of the telephone pole directly across the street. YEP! I was correct in my assumption; the fuse holder for the transformer attached to that pole was hanging down, indicating to myself that it had blown and that was what had made that "BOOM!"
Back inside and closing the door, I realized that I could not contact the power company using our home phone because of the power loss. I went out into the garage to get my cellphone from the car. That's where it has stayed for the majority of time I've had it.
I turned it on, waiting for the "DROID" announcement from the AI voice to let me know it was ready for action. That's when I knew I had another problem; I didn't know the number and it wasn't included in my list of numbers on my phone's dialer application. Next thing I knew, my Android was speaking to me, asking me how it could help me. I must have touched something on the screen while holding it. Not one to refuse help in time of critical need, I explained that I needed the number of Owen County Electric Co-op. It came back with "here is a list of the local offices of Owen County Electric." I scrolled down the provided list to the Florence Office and touched the little phone Icon provided. Next thing I knew, I was connected with the automated, power outage reporting system.
I paused, to consider the wonder of the technological world I was only, barely aware, of living in.
I provided any and all information being asked for, pressing 1, 2, 3,or 4 as they applied to this situation. Before the called was ended, I was afforded opportunity to leave a recording of myself explaining everything I knew concerning the situation. The automated voice assured me that everything that could be done toward fixing the problem, would be done as soon as possible. I knew it was being honest with me because Owen County Electric had always been so. I was full of acquired confidence and very relieved by the events that had taken place up to that point.
I would go outside, get my little office chair and wait for the action to begin. It was then that I understood that the garage door opener would not work without power. That's OK!, I know how to open the door manually. I had never done it since I had our new A&E door installed. I remembered how difficult a task it was opening the old one manually and feared that I may not be able to do it now that I am so old and feeble in body. I worried needlessly, for when I pulled on the little, RED emergency handle with one hand and lifted on a section of hinge on the door, it rose so easily, a child could have done it; but WAIT!, they could never have reached the RED handle. I was WRONG again in my thinking. It's something I'm getting used to at my age. 77 years will take a toll on one's mental agility.
I deployed my little office chair on the driveway, sit myself down and looked at some movement that was taking place up our street. It was BOB, my best neighborhood friend, putting his trashcans out for collection. I yelled at him and he looked my way. He said something to Sharon, his wife and headed toward me. He isn't on the same power supplier system that we are, so he wouldn't know that our power was out. His power is supplied by DUKE Energy and runs underground, not on one of those old fashioned power poles. It was just then that I realized, I do not know how the current power supplier situation that exists on our street came about. NOTE TO SELF: acquire more information concerning this matter at a later time; right now, it's chit-chat with BOB time.
I filled him in and he says he had heard the BOOM but didn't know the source at the time.
So help me; we hadn't been talking very long when this white, pick-up truck with a Owen County Logo on the door pulled into the open space of my next-door neighbor's driveway. The driver got out, cellphone to ear, and commenced walking around, checking first one thing, then another, none of it making good sense to BOB and I. I could only suppose, the someone on his phone was directing his movements. He must be new at this stuff, or he would have known that I was whom he should have started out talking to if he really wanted the low-down. The man continued to ignore BOB and I and I grew more and more irritated as he did so. Then, he put his phone away, climbed into his truck and drove down our street only to return in a few minutes, pulling back into the same parking spot, only facing the opposite direction. Hew then proceeded to open one of the large, plastic pipes that hung on the side of the inside of his truck bed, pulled out this large diameter, bright yellow, fiberglass pole, which I recognized right away as the device his kind use to safely remove and replace blown fuses from the ground, not from a cherry-picker.
BOB and I walked over to the back of his truck and watched. He asked if any of use liked Squirrel. I know I do but neither BOB nor our neighbor CARROL had eaten Squirrel before and did not desire to enjoy the dead Squirrel that lay at the bottom of the pole the man was currently working with. I went over to observe the dead body. At first sight, I wondered if it was the exploding Squirrel that made that loud BOOM! or the fuse exploding, as I had first suspected. I will only say that it was a terrible sight to see. High voltage, surging through a shorted out Squirrel, tends to instantly vaporize all liquid content of said animal, transforming it into a small steam bomb. There it lay, locked in the short-circuiting position it must have been in as it's insides forced their way out. I recognized a small kidney among the strewn intestines.
With the power restored, I bid BOB "see you later" and went back inside to set the time on all the electrical appliances in the house. I sat down at my computer and looked over at where the Squirrel lay and you probably won't believe what I saw. There was a large, Turkey Vulture there having some freshly cooked, Squirrel. I know I had never seen such a sight before but I was instantly filled with the desire to witness that Vulture as it took off after that heavy meal. I wondered how much runway a meal-ladened bird of that size would require to get airborne. Sad to say, it stayed longer than I was willing to just for that chance and I missed the departure.
That ends my unusual kind of day and my infrequent sharing for now. Hope I didn't bore you.
It was strange and yet, I've heard it several times before during the time I've lived here.
Then, all the power in the house went off and it was much too quiet.
Realizing what had been the source of the noise, I hurried, as well as I am able to hurry, out the front door, across our yard and far enough out from under our large, shade tree to be able to see the top of the telephone pole directly across the street. YEP! I was correct in my assumption; the fuse holder for the transformer attached to that pole was hanging down, indicating to myself that it had blown and that was what had made that "BOOM!"
Back inside and closing the door, I realized that I could not contact the power company using our home phone because of the power loss. I went out into the garage to get my cellphone from the car. That's where it has stayed for the majority of time I've had it.
I turned it on, waiting for the "DROID" announcement from the AI voice to let me know it was ready for action. That's when I knew I had another problem; I didn't know the number and it wasn't included in my list of numbers on my phone's dialer application. Next thing I knew, my Android was speaking to me, asking me how it could help me. I must have touched something on the screen while holding it. Not one to refuse help in time of critical need, I explained that I needed the number of Owen County Electric Co-op. It came back with "here is a list of the local offices of Owen County Electric." I scrolled down the provided list to the Florence Office and touched the little phone Icon provided. Next thing I knew, I was connected with the automated, power outage reporting system.
I paused, to consider the wonder of the technological world I was only, barely aware, of living in.
I provided any and all information being asked for, pressing 1, 2, 3,or 4 as they applied to this situation. Before the called was ended, I was afforded opportunity to leave a recording of myself explaining everything I knew concerning the situation. The automated voice assured me that everything that could be done toward fixing the problem, would be done as soon as possible. I knew it was being honest with me because Owen County Electric had always been so. I was full of acquired confidence and very relieved by the events that had taken place up to that point.
I would go outside, get my little office chair and wait for the action to begin. It was then that I understood that the garage door opener would not work without power. That's OK!, I know how to open the door manually. I had never done it since I had our new A&E door installed. I remembered how difficult a task it was opening the old one manually and feared that I may not be able to do it now that I am so old and feeble in body. I worried needlessly, for when I pulled on the little, RED emergency handle with one hand and lifted on a section of hinge on the door, it rose so easily, a child could have done it; but WAIT!, they could never have reached the RED handle. I was WRONG again in my thinking. It's something I'm getting used to at my age. 77 years will take a toll on one's mental agility.
I deployed my little office chair on the driveway, sit myself down and looked at some movement that was taking place up our street. It was BOB, my best neighborhood friend, putting his trashcans out for collection. I yelled at him and he looked my way. He said something to Sharon, his wife and headed toward me. He isn't on the same power supplier system that we are, so he wouldn't know that our power was out. His power is supplied by DUKE Energy and runs underground, not on one of those old fashioned power poles. It was just then that I realized, I do not know how the current power supplier situation that exists on our street came about. NOTE TO SELF: acquire more information concerning this matter at a later time; right now, it's chit-chat with BOB time.
I filled him in and he says he had heard the BOOM but didn't know the source at the time.
So help me; we hadn't been talking very long when this white, pick-up truck with a Owen County Logo on the door pulled into the open space of my next-door neighbor's driveway. The driver got out, cellphone to ear, and commenced walking around, checking first one thing, then another, none of it making good sense to BOB and I. I could only suppose, the someone on his phone was directing his movements. He must be new at this stuff, or he would have known that I was whom he should have started out talking to if he really wanted the low-down. The man continued to ignore BOB and I and I grew more and more irritated as he did so. Then, he put his phone away, climbed into his truck and drove down our street only to return in a few minutes, pulling back into the same parking spot, only facing the opposite direction. Hew then proceeded to open one of the large, plastic pipes that hung on the side of the inside of his truck bed, pulled out this large diameter, bright yellow, fiberglass pole, which I recognized right away as the device his kind use to safely remove and replace blown fuses from the ground, not from a cherry-picker.
BOB and I walked over to the back of his truck and watched. He asked if any of use liked Squirrel. I know I do but neither BOB nor our neighbor CARROL had eaten Squirrel before and did not desire to enjoy the dead Squirrel that lay at the bottom of the pole the man was currently working with. I went over to observe the dead body. At first sight, I wondered if it was the exploding Squirrel that made that loud BOOM! or the fuse exploding, as I had first suspected. I will only say that it was a terrible sight to see. High voltage, surging through a shorted out Squirrel, tends to instantly vaporize all liquid content of said animal, transforming it into a small steam bomb. There it lay, locked in the short-circuiting position it must have been in as it's insides forced their way out. I recognized a small kidney among the strewn intestines.
With the power restored, I bid BOB "see you later" and went back inside to set the time on all the electrical appliances in the house. I sat down at my computer and looked over at where the Squirrel lay and you probably won't believe what I saw. There was a large, Turkey Vulture there having some freshly cooked, Squirrel. I know I had never seen such a sight before but I was instantly filled with the desire to witness that Vulture as it took off after that heavy meal. I wondered how much runway a meal-ladened bird of that size would require to get airborne. Sad to say, it stayed longer than I was willing to just for that chance and I missed the departure.
That ends my unusual kind of day and my infrequent sharing for now. Hope I didn't bore you.
