Mom got up at 4:45 and started the coffee. It was kind of funny, I was awake and could see her shuffling towards me in her big white sweattery nightgown thing like a big old shuffly ghost.
"What are you doing?" I asked sleepily.
"Closing the door so I don't wake you up, I'm going to turn on lights and make coffee," she replied. The fuck, woman? why are you up! But ... that's her.
She closed the door and I laid there a minute. I had to pee. So I got up. I was awake for a while listening to her bump about. Then I smelled her cigarette and was happy the door was shut. I had two windows open, the room was freezing and it felt good, and the wind was blowing outside, rain was falling, the big storm that we've been waiting for was on the way.
I fell back asleep and woke up when I heard birds, around 7. I got up, hit the restart button on the coffee to heat it back up. She usually does that for me so it is hot when I'm up but I beat her to it.
I played with my phone. At about 8:30 I started working, and the lights started flickering around 8:45.
I brewed more coffee, just in case we lost power. Wicked Smaaahhht. And like that. The power went off at 9:30.
I called the office for the mobile home park and the office manager who is only on duty on Wednesdays does not come to the office regularly. Of course today she's working but not here. So helpful.
She told me to call maintenance.
The dude said "we manage 5 parks so I don't know what's going on over there. Call Eversource." So helpful... thank you.
I skipped my 10am meeting. My co-worker H and I were supposed to have check-in at 10:30 and I asked if we could boop it. I explained the situation.
I also told her I was so happy to be HERE because there is no way my mom could have handled this solo. She would have absolutely lost her shit.
H said "there is only one letter's difference between Outage and Outrage." And I thought that was hilarious.
Before I called Eversource, I decided to drive around the neighborhood to see if anyone else had lights on. I went down to the office and mailroom, they have power. Okay. I drove around and looked and not a single light was on in any of the mobile homes except oh - that one has their porch light on. Okay so not everyone is without power.
I surmised old people like sitting in the bloody darkness on a cloudy shitty rainy Wednesday.
Coming back to the house I saw two dudes down the circle getting in a car. Oh hurrah, humans. They drove towards me. I waved at them and they slowed, stopped, rolled the window down.
"Is Shirley okay?" asked the driver
"Oh yeah absolutely, she's great. I'm just visiting. But I wanted to ask you, since you are out and about. You have power at your trailer?"
"Neither of us do," the driver told me.
"I was in the middle of making bacon on the stove for breakfast and the power went out!" said the passenger. Obviously very sad. I would be too.
"So you're off to breakfast and some fun somewhere, eh?" I asked.
"Maybe breakfast, and maybe fun. But mostly breakfast," said the passenger.
"I can't deal with any of this without some coffee," the driver said. "I called Eversource and put in a report so," he shrugged. I could tell I was keeping this man from coffee.
I thanked them. I told them I'd also call Eversource to add to the complaint.
They drove away and I wondered where good breakfast was around here.
Okay, evidence of two additional homes with no power down this end.
I came back in and mom was reporting this had no power and that has no power and the phone isn't working and she walked over to Joyce's but Joyce HAS power. But Joyce also has a generator so maybe she's running on her generator... okay Sherlock Shirley thank you.
Also she can get out and walk all over at top speed when she wants to, if she wen't over to Joyce's and back here in the amount of time it took me to drive down to the clubhouse and office.
I called Eversource.
The customer service girl said one other call had come in and I told her it was probably the guy I just talked to outside. So there were at least three homes without power. I told her the one neighbor didn't call in because they were going to breakfast. Everyone else is already gone for the day. I don't know how many houses are without power beyond the three I know.
She said they had already dispatched a crew.
I decided I should figure out what to do about my noon training call with a client. I told my mom I was going to the library.
The service truck pulled in as I was getting ready to go out. Mom was out here as fast as you could imagine. She headed straight to the truck. I decided to head her off at the pass. The guy was on the phone, and mom gave them the entire play by play about everything. The guy said they were there to figure it out.
I told him I had an incident number, gave him my cel, and told him I was going to work at the library. He said he'd call or text with news.
Around 1pm I got a text saying the electrical box between mom and her neighbor Mike had burned out. They had to replace it.
"I'm not sure how long this will take, or if the power will be on again today but we'll do our best since the storm is coming."
Yes. The Storm. We're expecting a monster storm tonight and tomorrow. Fudge. "The STORM."
Library.
I went into the town library and asked if it was okay if I wasn't a resident but I'm visiting a resident, may I please work. They said absolutely and pointed me to a quiet place. The quiet place had no internet connection, there was no wifi signal. I walked back and the woman nodded "Oh no. That wing has problems in the rain. Sit in the teen area, there are no teens right now because they are at school."
I had to do a training call at noon, and I was probably going to annoy the two or three people reading in the teen area.
Walking about I realized I should use the bathroom, and there was the Meeting Room, where they do the town meeting and other things. Powerful wifi signal, no other humans, alright! I set up there. I plugged the phone and laptop in. I set to work.
Got on my call with the client and apologized for the Old Navy baseball hat and sweatshirt, explained where I was sitting (big gorgeous window behind me), and why, and the fact I was not professionally groomed and showered, that's not usually how I'd roll. They laughed and said it was okay. They were proud of me for being there. They said I could have canceled. No. Gotta take care of my peeps.
I did the training, and one of the guys on the call I've known for YEARS through different clients. He said to me, "You are so calm and caring, and I love listening to you talk and explain things. With everything you have going on today, I'm so impressed at how you showed us all of this, this was fantastic. Thank you."
It made my day. I told him that in the midst of everything being wild and somewhat out of control, I knew this would relax me. I knew this would be good for me to not cancel.
We had a team meeting at 1, that was not as calming and nice, and I got a little frustrated over a few things but I let them go. Just let it go. You can't change how people think and stuff so just pick your battles.
Next call, another hour long discussion about the same thing I spoke with the other client on. It was a good talk. They had complaints and suggestions. I told them I am 100% in agreement with them, and maybe in the future those things would be in place, but for right now, how can we work together to make this work?
Check in with my manager next. We mostly talked about Guster. He personally knows Ryan and his wife. So he wanted to know all about the tour and shows.
The library was closing at 4. It was 3:45. I decided to pack up and go home and see what was happening. Is the power back.
Mom was bundled up and cranky. The power was not yet back on. She said it was 60 degrees in there. Okay lady, Let's go to your favorite restaurant, eat some dinner, see what happens next. I asked if she wanted to go check into the hotel if the power wasn't yet on by the time we left. She said she wanted to go to a different neighbor (not Joyce) with a generator maybe, and stay there.
Not me, I'll go to the hotel but okay boo, if you think you can invite yourself into someone's home like that we'll see what happens after dinner.
Around 5pm I got a text saying power was restored. We finished dinner, knowing that the furnace was heating up in the tin can, and things would be warmed up for us to return. And sure enough they were.
I somewhat regret not making a hotel reservation anyway. Ha. Here's a picture of my glass of wine at the bar at the foodrinkery. The Red Sox were on TV. My mom has a mouth on her when watching the game. It is kind of funny being "back home" here in Massachusetts listening to her call balls and strikes and the pitcher being a "fucking idiot." Must say it's sweet and delightful.
exercise: 12/12 hours of 250 steps. No dedicated 10 due to weather.
blood glucose:
8:30am: 171
4pm: 130
10:15pm: 181
food:
coffee/water
10:30am: Metformin
5pm: Cheeseburger, onion rings, pickle, cole slaw. Metformin+Jardiance
White Wine
8:30pm: left over turkey dinner w/some stuffing and mashed potatoes, gravy
more white wine
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