Power Failure Last Week, Now Equipment Failure

This has been another interesting week, and it still is.

First, the Good News

We haven’t lost power this week, here in Sauk Centre.

I mentioned last week’s electricity-free Monday in last week’s post:

“…when my town’s power came back online late Monday afternoon: the notes weren’t there any more. That’s something I may talk about, sometime next week….”
(“Fusion Rocket Engines, SETI and Science: Seriously“, “So I researched and…” (July 29, 2023)

Since I said that I might talk about the power outage, and probably won’t get much else done today (I started writing this Tuesday), now seems like a good time to pick up that loose thread.

Two Power Lines Plus One Construction Vehicle Equals Zero Power

July 24, 2023, was just another Monday. Until mid-morning.

Then my computer’s monitor went black, and the house got very quiet.

Number three daughter checked the Sauk Centre Public Utilities (SCPU) Facebook page, although I didn’t know it at the time.

When she told me what was going on, I wondered where she got her information: but didn’t think to ask until later. And I’m wandering off-topic.

Anyway, I read these ‘what’s going on’ posts on the SCPU Facebook page. All dates are July 24, 2023.

Sauk Centre Public Utilities
“Update on power outage. The City of Melrose came to help with the lines that are down. The crew are working diligently. Hopefully power can be restored by 6 pm. Thank you everyone for your patience.”

Sauk Centre Public Utilities
“The Sauk Centre Electric department is working to restore power. Two major electrical lines have been torn down by a construction vehicle. There is no estimated time line as to when power will be restored.”

[redacted]
[redacted] no. We still have power on the opposite end of town

[redacted]
Is power out for the entire town?

Power came back on around 5:30 p.m. — for this household, at any rate.

Nothing to do online — no sound from the refrigerator, freezer or household air system — and not nearly as much sound from traffic outside — made Monday an exceptional day. Quiet, for one thing.

And a bit warmer than usual.

Thanks to our son-in-law and number two daughter, this house has central air conditioning and heating. So as a rule, we don’t swelter in summer. That’s — nice. Very nice.

I grew up before air conditioning, central or otherwise, was common around here. So opening the house at night and closing it early in the morning would be a familiar routine.

But I don’t yearn for the days of spending part of each summer keeping as still as possible, while not dripping sweat on whatever I was trying to do.

Researching and/or writing wasn’t an attractive option — I type much faster (and more legibly) than I write, and avoid transcribing from handwritten material when it’s practical.

On the Whole, a Pleasant Monday: For Me

I looked for, and found, a book that I’d misplaced; started re-reading Carroll’s Alice books; and did a little on-paper sketching for a story that’s been on the back burner for years. And I just plain relaxed.

That was, on the whole, a pleasant experience. Partly, for me, because I’m a retired guy.

Sauk Centre, Minnesota, isn’t a bustling trade hub like Paris or Singapore. But we’re living in the early 21st century like everyone else.

When there’s no power, there’s no business happening. Cash registers have long since gone digital, so unless the boss gets very creative, there’s no point in keeping a store open.

For offices and industries, it’s the same story. When there’s no power, nothing gets done. Unless someone has backup generators, or highly creative ways to do tasks.

I haven’t heard or read this anywhere, but my guess is that Monday, July 24, 2023, was a blank spot for Sauk Centre’s businesses.

Which is, besides my personal convenience, why I was glad when the power came back on.

This Week? It Could be Worse

At the moment, there are no severe thunderstorm warnings in effect in Minnesota.

The last I checked, the drought is still “moderate” around Sauk Centre. But that doesn’t doesn’t show on this map.

And, happily, the heat around here is fairly normal for the Upper Midwest in August.

That’s just as well, since our air conditioning went on the fritz Tuesday morning.

Solutions, Short- and Long-Term

I’ve been feeling less than chipper since the weekend. Concentrating has been difficult, and so has trying to concentrate. Or wanting to. I was getting up to speed by Monday evening, and then Tuesday morning the household’s air conditioning was out.

And probably had been since sometime during the night. We live in an old foursquare house, modified by previous owners but essentially still with the favorable surface-to-volume ratio. It takes some time for this place to either heat up or cool down.

My son was more on the ball than I was. By the time I’d started wondering why it was on the warm and not-dry side, he was talking to a repair service. A technician will, I trust, be out here Thursday: to figure out what’s wrong and at least start the process of fixing it.

Tuesday afternoon we had fans set up, giving us indoor breezes. And by Wednesday afternoon we’d bought a couple room air conditioners and set them up. By “we”, I mean my son.

I’m not sure whether I see the room air conditioners as a luxury or as medical equipment.

I don’t particularly enjoy feeling over-warm and defocused. But other members of the household are more sensitive to temperature extremes than I am. So, even if “medical equipment” is putting it rather high, I think buying those things made sense.

Particularly if it turns out that we’ll be waiting days, weeks, however-long, for parts needed to get the household main air system back online.

Like I said, “it could be worse”.

Being Glad We’re Here

We had reserves that made purchasing room air conditioners an option.

We live in a house with a bit of shade from trees, at least in the afternoon.

And we’re in the south side of Sauk Centre: a town that’s home to a bit over 4,000 folks, with a distinct lack of those vast concrete and asphalt expanses which help cities stay cozily hot on days like these.

I do not envy those who, for whatever reason, live in heavily-urbanized areas.

We have the technology. We can design cities that are not solar-powered deathtraps.

And that’s another topic.

Speaking of topics, I’ve picked one for this week’s ‘Saturday’ post. Three, actually.

And I’ve gotten just about no research or writing done so far.

I’m hoping that I’ll feel substantially less fuzzy tomorrow morning. But even if I am, there may not be enough time to get something presentable together.

Time to wrap this up. I started writing this post Tuesday, it’s now Wednesday afternoon.

I’ll have something to show on Saturday. How much and what, I don’t know yet.

Finally, the inevitable links to stuff that’s about Minnesota, me, and something entirely different:

• “Fusion Rocket Engines, SETI and Science: Seriously“
  (July 29, 2023)
• “Central Minnesota Unhealthy Air Quality and My Plans For Today“
  (June 28, 2023)
• “A Prescription, Disorders, Conformity and Culture“
  (May 20, 2023)
• “Tuesday, August 30, 2022: Son-in-Law Update, and a Coffee Break“
  (August 30, 2022)
• “Wind Chill Warning, and Our Furnace is Out“
  (January 7, 2022)