Darkness

it’s amazing how little we realize how dependent we are on electricity. For whatever reason, the local electricity company (I’m looking at you, edf) decided there was a need to do some engineering/repair work, and the entire island (about 60 people and 5 or 6 small businesses) had a power cut from 9am until 5pm today. It was promised last week (we all got a letter), but then it never materialised. this week, it certainly did.

So. no cup of tea or coffee. Its a bright day, so that’s fine, no lights needed. The printers can’t print anything, certainly can’t use their computers. The guy who does woodwork basicly can’t do anything, as the powertools don’t work (d’oh). the boring looking office is deserted, again presumably due to the lack of computers. The other small office battles on, but they are lacking large windows, so it looks very dark and gloomy in there. But the phones still work, and that’s how they do most of their business. My laptop works, as it has a battery, but I have never been so conscious of its limitations. Music is a nono. I can’t heat up the leftovers for lunch, as we have an electric cooker. Luckily our heating isnt electricity based, as it was pretty cold today. I escaped to a cafe for as long as laptop battery would allow, and when I return home at about 4:30 it was getting dark. The lights don’t work. What to do? Laptop battery is spent; I can’t read in the dark. I can’t draw in the dark. I can’t use a scalpel in the dark. I can’t even be virtuous and tidy, as I can’t see where things are meant to go.
Half an hour later the power came back on (no better than before the repairs). The lights returned, the laptop charged, music played, dinner was cooked. all was well.

But it is amazing, or perhaps, scary, to think how accustommed to all these luxuries we are, at least in the western world. Even such analogue things such as reading a book relies heavily on modern sources of light – not to mention the modern, hulking machinery that printed it. It was good to be reminded of the rhythms of the natural world.

now to turn off the light and go to sleep. in the dark.


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