Quote Originally Posted by Pam

Hope the guys at the fire house have the trucks ready for
when you light the candles.
The ONLY Tyme in my life I've ever wished for MORE Kandilz on the Cake!!
More Fire = More HEAT!
It's sure been a "memorable" Birfday ... with an Early Start ...

'Bout 2:00 pm TUESDAY afternoon ...
*Ka-BOINK* >>> *beep* - *Beep* - *BEEP* went the 'puters UPS ...
*Kee-RASH** >>> and away went Pet Talk into a BLACK screen ...
MY...did it get QUIET ... nary an Electron was flowing

Call Unka Pat & Miz Joan ~ HEY - youze guys got 'Lektrik??
"NO - all dark up here!"
OH,GOODIE - means it's Ohio Edison's problem - NOT mine!

Called the OE Trouble Line ... the dang ROBOT answered
I played the game and "talked" to the Robot ... "he" asked if I wanted a HOOMIN? YOU darn Bet'cha!

The Hoomin answered WAAAAY too quick ... "yes'sir - you're The First Caller!"
NOT a good sign ... it'll take another dozen calls before the believe they MIGHT have a problem.
"Promised Repair Time" - TWO Hours ... Reddie Killer-Watt can't put his hard hat on
and get a truck started THAT fast ... I asked if that (2 hours) was a "Promise".
"Well, NO, but we'll try to have you *UP* ASAP."

"ASAP" has stretched into 30 (THIRTY) HOURS - with two brief "interruptions" of
blinking power at 10 pm last night (for about an hour) and again this morning for 1.5 hours).

Fix #1: Reddie Killer-Watt JUNIOR, the Trouble Truck, was on the street by 3:00 pm ...
couldn't "find" anything so he replaced the blown fuse ...
*FIREWORKS* two poles away showed him where "the problem" was!
BUTT ... "Trouble Truck" means LITTLE Truck ("ONLY" worth $150,000!) with a short boom -
no can reach the problem pole ... He called for a "CREW" (MORE Guys, LOT more $$ Expensive Trucks)!

"The CREW" (FOUR Guys, piloting $ 1/4 MILLION Dollar "Rides" - a BIG Bucket truck and
a new Pole Digger/Setter truck - the We Fix Anything Guys) showed up about 9:00 pm ...
and were highly distressed to realize that their BIG Boom was NOT gonna reach THAT far off the road
to the the pole that needed first aid.
I pulled up just as "The Kid" - an obviously green lineman (BRAND NEW climbing gear -
and looked like he just came out of high school) was getting "dressed" in rain suit, lineman's belt,
and pole climbing spikes on his boots ... "The Kid" wasn't smiling --- the three Old Pharts
were all >grinning< from ear-to-ear as the helped suit him up!
I thankfully noted the older, experienced lineman also greared up and climbed right benind "The Kid".

Within an hour WE HAD LIGHTS!
Lasted an HOUR - **Ka-BOINK** and the 'puter died again.

It was DARK - Really Dark - and *nippie* in the house by now ... ALL Night.
My Non-Electric heating pad (SmokeMutt) did a good job under multiple blankies,
Cinder had the Foot-Warmer position.

By the time the second problem on our road (frozen tree fell on a high voltage line
again - back in the woods) got corrected, there were MAJOR transmission line failures -
half the County stayed dark till 6:00 pm tonight.

Little did I know - the "stop up for dinner" invite was for MY birfday partee ...
A few of the "Old Fire Gang" were in on it ... I still hadn't caught on ...
We "adjourned" into the Big City to a nice restaurant with lights & HEAT ...
and returned to the Wilderness to find lights and HEAT at HOME, too!

*Interesting and Memorable* it was ...
but I'll pass on a repeat!

So THAT's whay I haven't 'said' anything till now ...
We don't have a Dawg-Powered generator ...

THANKS for ALL the Kind Words and Good Wishes!!!!



/s/ the Old Phart & Birfday Boy