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Linking up with Wordless Wednesday and Sandee at Comedy Plus.
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Words for Wednesday was begun by Delores and has become a moveable feast of word or picture or music prompts to encourage us to write stories, poems, or whatever strikes our fancy.
This month, the prompts are being provided by Lissa.
This week's prompts are:
1. light
2. voice
3. lock
4. hunt
5. laugh
And/Or
6. wild
7. simple
8. evanescent
9. vulnerable
10. frigid
She grabbed her phone and turned on the flashlight function the moment she heard the boom outside. The storm that had blown up in the night had managed, again, to knock out the electric transformer between her and the neighbors. That noise always startled her when it happened, and it was even more jarring when it awakened her from a sound sleep.
She and that neighbor would, along with others, be without power until everything simmered down and the repair crews could safely come out.
Once she'd looked out the window and made sure of what she suspected, that the whole block was dark, she turned off the LIGHT on her phone as using it caused the actual phone part to LOCK. She made the call automatically, as she and the neighbors had been left without power a few times when the company never even realized they were out. None of them had faith any longer in the system the company supposedly had in place to make calling in your outage unnecessary.
While calling, she put the phone on speaker so she could use both hands to HUNT up her regular flashlight in the drawer. At the sound of the automated VOICE coming from the phone speaker, her cat Sonny jumped almost as high as she had when the transformer had blown. Looking like a WILD thing, he darted around as if seeking the other person in the room that he could hear but not see, causing her to LAUGH.
She punched the buttons to tell the computer that yes, this was her account, yes, the electric was out, yes, she had checked the breakers (she wished this case were that SIMPLE). Being without electricity at night made her feel very VULNERABLE, even though she knew that safety is, at best, an illusion, an EVANESCENT idea.
At least, she thought, this was a summer storm. Now that the lightening had passed the area, she could open the windows and the breeze would keep the room cool enough to sleep. Not like when the power went out in the FRIGID winter a few months back and she'd had to go to a motel to keep from freezing, smuggling Sonny and her old dog crate in and sharing the room with the older neighbor lady up the street so they could both afford it. That had been an adventure.
She texted that neighbor now to check on her, and they agreed to call each other in the morning. Window open, she listened to the steady rain and drifted off after a while and was pleasantly surprised to hear her carbon monoxide detector chirp it's "I've got power again!" sound just after sunrise, letting her know the repair crews had already been at it and the situation was well in hand.
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Today is:
Black Cow Root Beer Float Day -- the ice cream and root beer combination was supposedly first served on this date in 1893 by Frank J. Wisner, owner of Cripple Creek Brewing, and he named it after the local Cow Mountain
Hanawa Bayashi -- Kazuno City, Japan (parades and music in the merchant's quarter, through tomorrow)
Hijra -- Islam (Islamic New Year Begins at the viewing of the new moon crescent, so exact time/date varies by location)
Hot & Spicy Food Day
Ibumin Earoeni Day -- Nauru (Day of the Tribes)
Jeshen -- Afghanistan (Independence Day)
Manuel Luis Quezon Day -- Quezon City, Philippines
National Aviation Day -- US
National Medical Dosimetrist's Day -- American Association of Medical Dosimetrists (medical radiation safety experts)
Potato Day
St. John Eudes' Day (Patron of Baie-Comeau, Quebec, Canada)
St. Sebald's Day (a/k/a Sebaldus) (Patron of Bavaria, Germany; Nuremburg, Germany; against cold weather and freezing)
Vinalia Rustica -- Ancient Roman Calendar (Festival of Ripening Grapes)
Watch the Pot Wednesday -- Fairy Calendar
World Humanitarian Day -- UN
Birthdays Today:
Snuffleupagus (year unconfirmed)
Jennifer Morrison, 1979
Matthew Perry, 1969
LeAnn Womack, 1966
Kyra Sedgwick, 1965
Kevin Dillon, 1965
John Stamos, 1963
Adam Arkin, 1956
Cindy Nelson
Peter Gallagher, 1955
Mary Matlin, 1953
Jonathan Frakes, 1952
John Deacon, 1951
Gerald McRaney, 1948
Tipper Gore, 1948
Bill Clinton, 1946
Jack Canfield, 1944
Jill St. John, 1940
Diana Muldaur, 1938
Franklin Story Musgrave, 1935
Willie Shoemaker, 1931
Don Ho, 1930
Gene Roddenberry, 1921
Malcolm Forbes, 1919
Jimmy Rowles, 1918
Ring Lardner, Jr., 1915
Philo T. Farnsworth, 1906 (forgotten inventor of television)
Ogden Nash, 1902
Coco Chanel, 1883
George Bellows, 1882
Orville Wright, 1881
John Dryden, 1631
Debuting/Premiering Today:
"Animal Clinic" and "Acrobat Ranch"(first Saturday morning children's programs, on ABC), 1950
Today in History:
The Roman Senate is compelled to elect Octavian, later Augustus Caesar, Consul, BC43
Augustus Caesar dies, 14
Crusaders defeat the Saracens in the Battle of Ascalon, 1099
Mary Queen of Scots arrives in Leith to assume the throne, 1561
Five people are executed for witchcraft in Salem, Mass., 1692
Presentation of Jacque Daguerre's new photographic process to the French Academy of Sciences, 1839
The New York Herald reports the discovery of gold in California, 1849
The first All-American Soap Box Derby is held in Dayton, Ohio, 1934
Hurricane Dianne kills 200 and does about $1 Billion in damage, 1955
Leonard Bernstein conducts his final concert, ending with Ludwig van Beethoven's Symphony No. 7, 1990
Several hundred East Germans cross the frontier between Hungary and Austria during the Pan-European Picnic, part of the events which began the process of the Fall of the Berlin Wall, 1989
A series of strong storms lashes Southern Ontario spawning several tornadoes as well as creating extreme flash flooding within the city of Toronto and its surrounding communities, 2005
A team of divers discover the wreck of a Swedish warship, part of King Erik XIV's fleet, that sank in 1564 in the Baltic Sea, 2011
NASA satellites take photos showing that the eastern basin of the Aral Sea had for the first time completely dried up, 2014
The monsoon rains finally ease up in Kerala State, India, where flooding has already claimed 350 lives and left 200,000+ in relief camps, 2018
Great story. I'm not a fan of blackouts. I have lanterns, but the light isn't strong enough to read by for too long and there's not much else to do when the TV doesn't work.
ReplyDeleteWell written story and very realistic. I never put any trust in those automated outage tellers. And after a big storm in November 2013, they said on the radio to please report outages, as the automted system was an urban myth.
ReplyDeleteIt is indeed a realistic story - and I am glad it was both a summer outage, and short-lived. You are so good at these prompts - and I loved the smuggled animals too.
ReplyDeleteIt's odd when there is a power cut in the house the cars driving by in the streets still have their lights on. They must be with a different electric company than ours.
ReplyDeleteGod bless.
Lovely photo :-)
ReplyDeleteIt can be a nightmare when the power goes especially at night i agree with the others it was very realistic i recognised it myself heheh!
Have a powertastic safe week 😷😷😷
Sunrises and sunsets have been especially magnificent lately.
ReplyDeletePretty sunset there from your place. Power outages are no fun. Thankfully we have only had about one in twelve years, but Gramma has them all the time and it is frustrating.
ReplyDeleteMimi,
ReplyDeleteI hate power outages! Usually, we get a lot of flickering and actually very little lost power which is always good. Although the flickering drives us a crazy, it's better than losing it altogether. You did a fab job on your short story with your list of word prompts. Beautiful sunset shot! I love it when nature's color palate can be seen right from one's yard. Happy WW!
Lovely sunset. I will be at a lost without power supply. Good thing it is not often we have power outage.
ReplyDeleteWhat a beautiful sunset. You have a very nice view too.
ReplyDeleteLove your story and you always use the prompts so very well. I've had more than one of these nights.
Thank you for joining the Wordless Wednesday Blog Hop.
Have a fabulous Wordless Wednesday. Big hug. ♥
Gorgeous sunset and right in your own backyard ~ beauty! ^_^
ReplyDeleteLive with love each day,
A ShutterBug Explores,
aka (A Creative Harbor)
that sunset photo is awesome !! and I know too well
ReplyDeleteabout the transformer incident; it's behind my house and enough to wake the dead; it's blown probably a dozen times since I moved in ~~~~~
Cool sky! Power outages are a pain, which is why we have a whole house generator.
ReplyDeleteGreat story! and could have that Root Beer Floar now Please? xoxo
ReplyDeleteAt one time the transformer used to regularly take a lightning strike as it bounced off the pylon in our field. Eventually they replaced it with a different sort and also moved it away from the barn. It has never had a direct hit since. I hope I am not chancing fate by saying that!
ReplyDeleteI can so relate to the story after losing power recently. I always call immediately figuring noone else will. Our neighbor to the right is on a different line so he will still have power- most annoying.
ReplyDeleteI so wish I could see past all my neighbor's houses and greenery ? to see such a perfect gift as that sunset .. beautiful !!
ReplyDeleteI'm not a fan of power outages but I like the idea of having neighbors who can share the grief about it. Good use of the Words for Wed prompts.
ReplyDeleteHave a lovely day.