Marty the Ghost Hunter

A storm with high winds knocked out the power awhile back. That was frustrating on several counts, not the least of which was that it reminded one of how much he relies on electricity.

No power? Well, let me check on the status of repairs on the Internet...except with the power out, there's no Internet.

Well, then, I'll watch T...V...

All right, I'll nuke a quick bite of something. Oh, yeah. No electric, no microwave. And you want to leave the fridge and freezer closed anyway.

Okay, I'll read then. Click, click, click on the light switch before remembering, stupidly, no power, no lights.

So you just lay in bed. Of course, you might as well silver lining the outage, right? So I became a ghost hunter.

Whenever I did venture through the house, I used my cell phone to illuminate where I walked. Not the flashlight setting, because that would use too much battery power. I simply flipped on the screen light, which gave just enough glow to light my way.

It also gave the hallways, stairs, and rooms that soft gray green light which ghost hunting shows seem to have patented. Then my mind saw all the movement which managed to escape into the shadows right before I could really see it. I could the feel the cold air presence of the poor souls trapped, doomed to eternal, earthly dwelling. Near whispers emanated from all around me.

Of course I never actually found ghosts. And a good for them, too, because I'd have given them what for if I had.

A Sign

Yesterday, I was heading home from Hessel, in Michigan's Glorious Upper Peninsula. I was intending to come home Monday but consciously took an extra day because, why not? There was nothing all that pressing and I had no appointments. Indeed Monday itself was a profitable business day even though I was out of town. I took several calls, one of which was for a very significant machine and cable order (enough to pay for my long weekend and then some in fact) which the customer requested a delivery of the next Tuesday, something I could accommodate quite readily. So I didn't need to be home to work. Work found me, for which in this case I was quite grateful.

Still, the daily bread must be baked. I rose this morning, opened the old barn around 6:30 and set to work, in part to take care of a few things I couldn't do yesterday because I had played hooky. Hey, I'm a responsible adult. Sometimes.

The Shop lights flickered once, at about 7:15, yet stayed on. Not so a few minutes later. They went off and stayed off. I took out my cell phone to report the outage (who would have thought thirty years ago that such a thing could be done?) and was soon told that my power would be restored by about 5 this afternoon. 

Dang. I coulda stayed north an extra day. Ah well. Be happy with what you got, right?

Dim Bulb

Of all things that I know little about, electricity tops the list. What I do know applies more to electric motors and not household power. I can replace an outlet or a light switch if I know that's the problem, but diagnostics are way above my pay grade. That's why when the kitchen lights went out yesterday I was at a loss.

The outlets worked, thank goodness. There were no worries about food spoilage due to the refrigerator not running. But the lights were off.

I tried all the usual suspects, flipping switches to no avail while checking the circuit breakers and the fuse box (yes, we still have a small auxiliary fuse box in our old home). The fluorescent bulbs seemed fine and appeared solidly in place. I was stumped.

I had stepped off the ladder which I had set up to check the bulbs and light fixtures without any clue what to try next. Absentmindedly, I reached for the light switch, flipping it. Viola! The lights came on. 

Now I don't want to turn them off. I bought new on/off switches from the hardware and new cords in case I need them. But it might be January before I dare try killing the lights.