Aftermath
Well, I missed the Big Storm Of 2006, holed up in Milwaukee until late Friday night. As I read accounts of suffering, privation, death and generosity, I had this feeling of deja vu that I couldn’t quite place: the pattern of sudden, chaotic natural upheaval followed just as suddenly by deceptive normality. Then this afternoon, I realized that the situation was (very faintly, for sure) echoing the Indonesian tsunami.
Chez Perils lost power for about 15 hours between midnight Thursday and Friday afternoon. The only lingering effect was the loss of internet access due, as I eventually diagnosed, to the fact that our wireless router got fried when the power came back on. A couple of clicks on Craigslist, a liaison in a QFC parking lot, a furtive cash transaction and I now have Wireless G (an upgrade), and everyone is happily surfing again.
Others have not been so fortunate, and many are still waiting for power to come back on. As folks try to ward away the chill, some unwisely bring fossil-fuel-burning appliances indoors, with tragic consequences. No matter where you live, it proves that you should engage in some level of emergency preparedness.
