It was hot and muggy, but never mind. A summer storm was coming across the Bay and would surely cool us off. Then the wind blew and the trees shook and the rain came down in one big splash and the power went out. Never mind, dining by candlelight is always nice. Wait, wait—there’s something wrong with this picture.
That’s it. We are not dining by candlelight. We are cooking by candlelight. Sort of. Since the stove is electric, we are hoping against hope that the remaining heat in the pan and the burner will be enough to finish cooking dinner.
We were hungry. We ate it anyway.
This morning the power was still out at the Writing Studio and Bait Shop. Blessedly, it was on at the Eastport Market, so I bought a cup of coffee and a piece of Bill Warner’s cherry creamcheese coffeecake and traded news with Russ and Donna. Seems a big tree crashed down at their place over in Central Lake. It landed right where their 16 year old daughter parks her car, but fortunately she was out and about in said car at the time. Unfortunately, that left them with plenty of time to worry about where else big trees might be crashing down. It all worked out of course. Most stuff does. But this parenthood business is not for wimps.
Torch Lake Views 
La Mirada Bob
June 1, 2011
What did the meat thermometer tell you? Safe and edible?
See, being a parent is not for wimps, they worry too much!
Gerry
June 1, 2011
Who could read??? But be at peace. We live!
Joss
June 1, 2011
Too. Right.
Part of the very big tree at the bottom of our garden came down last week. A large part. I knew I’d been right not to have that barbecue under there the week before when it’d also been windy. I worry for a reason, see? Sometimes.
Gerry
June 1, 2011
The only trouble is, I really like living in the trees. One day a tree will probably fall on me. I try to look up while I’m walking–be alert to the possibilities, as it were–but then I tend to trip. You cannot win. I believe I have succeeded in living long enough to be a worry to my son. Rob the Firefighter is always on my case. He says it is only fair. I say spinach.
Kathy
June 1, 2011
What wild and crazy weather is blowing through Michigan! We’re just hoping not to blow away. I am so glad the sixteen year old was not in her car. Think of the things parents have to worry about! I am thinking your power must be on now, since you commented at 4:38 p.m.
Gerry
June 1, 2011
Oh, she was in her car, but she was out and about instead of in the driveway. Good to see the tree toppled onto an empty parking space. Hard on Mom and Dad to think about what other trees might be swaying about in the vicinity of their daughter. I refuse to think about the things that might be swaying about in the vicinity of Rob the Firefighter. I like to think of him having a nice dinner with the Lady Alicia.
My power came on about 11 this morning and I was glad to see it and hear it.
P.j. grath
June 1, 2011
Is that a Stone House Bread wrapper I see by candlelight? It was windy all day today on this side but is finally peaceful this evening. Sigh! I would have liked overnight rain but did not want the threatened hail. No one I know wanted hail. And this time we didn’t get it.
Gerry
June 2, 2011
It is. Spinach feta to be precise. I’m glad you had no hail. Sometimes the things that don’t happen are the best of all . . .
torchlakedays
June 1, 2011
All I can say is, my nerves are frayed from all the bad weather everywhere! Drove to Ct today and saw there was a tornado just up the road in Springfield, Mass. ARGH. Parenthood is NOT for wimps, but then neither is life, either.
Gerry
June 2, 2011
I have been living in a cave. Now I have to go see what happened in Massachusetts. There are people I like living there.
P.S. – Not that it should matter. It does, somehow, but it shouldn’t.
katherine
June 2, 2011
We still have no power here so count your lucky stars! We are however “stealing” power from next door who has power (go figure). We put the alarm on overnight then use the coffee pot in the morning, use the computer for awhile, then all the rest of the day we have the fridge plugged in. Thank goodness we have a lake full of water out front although it’s a might bit chilly for bathing!
Gerry
June 2, 2011
GACK! I cannot believe you’re still down! There are strange things about the electrical connections around the lake. Babs and Betty Jo lost power for just a few minutes here and there – no major outage at all. I’m glad you’re coping and sorry it’s such a juggling act. I think I must be better prepared for these “little inconveniences.” That will be my summer project. If my Civil War veterans could do it, I can do it. All except the killing the bear part, I don’t think I’m up for that.
Preston
June 2, 2011
Does look might cozy.
Gerry
June 2, 2011
There was that. Cozy is good. But on balance, fully-cooked supper is even better!
Fee
June 2, 2011
You know what always strikes me in a power cut? How very quiet the house is. Without the rumbling of the refrigerator, the hum of the PC and satellite box, the soft “whump” noise the central heating boiler makes when it switches on, this is such a peaceful place to be. For a few hours, it’s fine. Then the peaceful place gets cold and I want the ‘leccy’ back on. I can at least cook, thanks to North Sea gas and battery-powered ignition. And make coffee the old fashioned way.
Parenthood; my aim is to survive long enough to spoil the grandbabies when their parents aren’t looking!
Gerry
June 2, 2011
I like that peaceful part. On the other hand, it can get awfully dark in the woods.
I wish you great success in the grandchild-spoiling department. I can’t help but think you’d be very good at it.
Scott Thomas Photography
June 3, 2011
You are a resourceful one, Gerry. A few years ago when there was a blackout in my area, we got out the grill and called in the neighbors for an impromptu block party. Hey, we didn’t want all the meat in our freezers to go to waste, right?
Gerry
June 3, 2011
We did that in the old neighborhood in Detroit, too, only it was during an ice storm in April. Our impromptu potluck featured spaghetti with meatballs and Tater Tots. Quite a few years later, after I had moved up here, I arrived in metro Detroit just as the Great Blackout occurred–the one that may have affected you, too. I ended up back in the old neighborhood, eating up all the melting treats by torchlight on the Donatos’ deck. It was wonderful. There was this song we learned in Brownies: Make new friends, but keep the old–one is silver and the other gold. Dumb song. Absolutely true, too.
Karma
June 3, 2011
Our power is back on too – after our tornado. Thank you again for the kind email. At the very least, we have a gas stove so we can still cook as long as we have matches. It never occured to me to grab the camera like you did during your outage, but I did get a blog post up about my very strange day. My duo was quite calm during the whole event, but they were never more than a few steps away from me.
Gerry
June 3, 2011
I am so glad everyone is OK. Talking to people at the Post Office today I learned that our storm was much worse than I knew, gathering force as it moved eastward–but nothing like what your community experienced. (Note to everyone else: For more proof that parenthood is not for wimps, you can read Karma’s post about the joys of learning you have just sent your daughter to the prom in Tornado Alley.)
lynnekovan
June 5, 2011
Am I a bit barking mad, planning to retire to Nova Scotia? Sybil over at Critters are Us has been eaten by black flies, and now you’ve had a massive storm……..wait a minute, we are in the midst of a drought here in the UK. What the heck, I’m still coming!
Gerry
June 5, 2011
I was confused, and then I realized . . . it’s the accent that fooled you. People who live in northern Michigan are often mistaken for Canadians. Boy oh boy will you be surprised when you find out how far it is from Nova Scotia to Michigan. But I’d go ahead and retire there anyway. It’s beautiful. There are good things to eat. There are nice people. I don’t see how you can go wrong.