Windy
It was an unusually blustery night as we got hit with the tail end of Hurricane Ike sweeping northward. The winds were about 40 mph, with gusts of 55. Since it takes a wind speed of at least 74 mph for a storm to be called a hurricane, what we got was a pale imitation. Still, it knocked out our electricity twice, the second time for more than two hours.
The power outage reminded me of why I still haven't bought the new stove I was diligently shopping for several months ago. Our old one has actual pilot lights for the burners and oven, meaning that it works just fine, thank you, even when the electricity is off. New stoves with electronic igniters won't. (A quick internet search turned up one company that makes a stove whose oven can be lit manually when the power is off: Premier. Since their stoves are also American and union-made, I need to check into this further.)
While the power was out I lit a few candles and our gas camping lantern, made oven-dried tomatoes, and listened to the Browns vs. Steelers on my wind-up radio (an older version of this one). Not a bad way to spend the evening.
What do you do when the power goes out? Add your comment by clicking below.
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