Things I've Learned In The Dark

We don’t have any power. Seems like the entire area doesn’t have any power. At 10pm, the whole neighbourhood is eerily dark. Dan is at work, and I am home alone with the kids. And this is what I have learned.


Power outages are exciting. It is so much fun to flick every single light switch on and off to see if the lights will come on. Each time is more thrilling than the next. I told the girls that none of the lights are going to work, but they need to test that theory over and over again.

The light doesn’t come on when the refrigerator is opened. No, really. We checked. And then we checked again. Then we opened the refrigerator door really slowly, and then really, really fast. Still, no light.

The microwave doesn’t work. That means no goodnight bottle. Coincidentally, that also means no goodnight.

The light doesn’t work in the upstairs bathroom. Crisis! The twins need this light on in order to sleep. I told them to close their little blue eyes and pretend it was on (oh my goodness, I felt like my father!). They didn’t fall for that. I told them that “the men” were trying to repair the hydro lines and were constantly distracted by the twins talking. If the girls would stop talking, the lights would come back on for sure!

The baby monitor doesn’t work. Sweet relief! I have no idea if Sarah is awake or not. If she screams Bloody Murder, I will hear. If not, she must be okay. This is weird!

Another bonus: it’s too dark to clean. Dan won’t be too pleased when he gets home because I had intended to wash his clothes for work tonight. That’s not going to happen. Two bad there aren’t two adults living here, each one who could take responsibility for their own clothes.

The stove doesn’t work. This is not good at all. No tea for me!

The Emergency Kit that I have prepared came in sooooo handy. Just kidding! I’m not the kind of mother who has an “emergency kit”...or even candles lying around. I was able to find a small orange scented candle which I have put in the upstairs bathroom (after the twins fell asleep). I also have a lovely Sweet Pea scented candle from Bath & Body Works for the living room. That’s the best I can do. I am getting a wicked headache from the fumes, but I can see 6 inches away from my face. Note to self: find the 200 tea lights that I know I have somewhere.

The air conditioner doesn’t work. AHHHH! This is starting to feeling a lot like the “olden days”! We all know that I am not an “olden days” kinda girl. I like my life modern!

Every neighbour goes outside when the power goes out, and all they want to do is talk to me about the power outage. Very annoying. First of all, this subject grows old pretty fast. Secondly, the evenings are mine to spend alone outside. Third, I am trying to dodge 90% of my neighbours this week. Turns out that someone (with too much time on their hands) memorized the bylaw complaint phone number. This person, rumour has it, is on a first name basis with the bylaw operator. It makes for an awkward game of “Guess The Rat”! Anyway, I spend 1-2 hours every night outside watering my gardens...ALONE! None of my neighbours ever go outside. Tonight, they were in the mood for an informal get together. I kept watering. These guys aren’t that tough. By 9pm, the bugs come out. As predicted, the neighbourhood retreated back into their homes, and I was alone.

The most important thing I’ve learned? My computer works (love, love, love my laptop) but not the router. I was hugely disappointed. Sigh. Guess I’ll go to sleep...or maybe I’ll flick the light switches to see if the lights come on!