There I was about 9 PM last night, lounging on the couch, eating cheddar popcorn and Ranier cherries while I watched the Olympics. I was nice and cosy in my mountain retreat, using more than my fair share of electricity as the dishwasher cycled, lamps glowed upstairs and down, and the computer remained fired up and ready for me when I finished my snack.
Just like that [finger snap] the world was plunged into darkness and silence, save the sight and sound of lightning and thunder. I stood up in the inky blackness and sensed - fortunately - my two cats coming to shelter by my legs. I was only steps away from the gas fireplace, so I turned it on while I found candles and matches, then turned it back off.
Now what? What the hell did people do before electricity? Is that how all those large families came to be? I killed twenty minutes trying to remember which lamps and ceiling fans were on and at what settings, checking the locks on the doors, tripping over the cats, opening the dishwasher, fumbling my way up the stairs, tripping over the cats, spilling wax on my hand, and cursing TV's that require electricity to be turned off.
I repeated my "game" with the lamps and ceiling fans upstairs, once again tripped over a cat (the other learned his lesson), flossed my teeth in the dark, prepared for bed, and watched the wild storm for two hours while I waited to get sleepy.
Kossacks are the smartest people I know, so I thought I'd ask your advice: what else could I have done? If you had to spend several hours with no electricity and a few candles, what could you do with yourself? Besides that?
PS - Hurry! It's thundering again!