As I sit in my computer lounge chair writing this post, I am without power or, should I say, limited power, because of a generator. On Sunday, a thunderstorm came and knocked out power for a lot of the area and by Tuesday we were still without power, but it is hot.
The next morning we were outside with our cell phones trying to see if our kids were okay, and if they had power. The reason we were outside is that we don’t get good cell reception in our house, and we have to have it connected to our Wi-Fi for calling and internet while inside. There just aren’t enough AT&T cell towers in our area, and the tower that we can see in our neighborhood is a Verizon tower.
A friend said we should switch to Verizon, and maybe we will before the next power outage. When our texts finally went through, both said they had power, and we asked if either of them had a generator. One said they did. They live only 10 minutes away, so an easy trip to get the generator, but all the traffic lights in the city were out. Everybody seemed calm and were following the rules of the road, luckily, and treated the traffic light as a stop sign.
In our almost 38 years of marriage, this was the first major power outage that lasted so long. On top of that, it is supposed to reach 100 degrees Fahrenheit.
So here is my story of resourcefulness. First up, the generator.
Generator
We wasted no time setting up the generator. This generator was a 2000 watt version that had two plugs. It came with one long electrical cord and we had another, and, before doing anything, my husband read all the instructions. One major safety point was that the generator needed to be outside in a ventilated area because of the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning.
The next thing was how to run the cords. We decided the cords would go through our livingroom window, which is close to the kitchen and laundry room where our freezer is located. All we did was remove the screen, pushed the cords through, and taped on both inside and outside the gap from the cords so we wouldn’t let in any exhaust or insects. So, now we had juice to refrigerator and our big freezer.
Another thing we realized was we only had one gallon gas container. Again we contacted my son; did the generator have a gas can? We were in luck: they did, and the container was full.
Now we were cooking with gas or, should I say, we were humming. Next, we took stock of the current situation.
Taking Stock and Creating New Routines
The first thing we took stock of was the kitchen. We now had the refrigerator, but what appliances could we use? Well, once the refrigerator was back to normal, we could temporarily disconnect it without worry. So, if we wanted to make a fried egg sandwich with American cheese on a hotdog bun, we plugged in the toaster oven instead. When we wanted a coffee again, we disconnected the fridge and plug the Keurig in. As for the cooktop, which is electric start, a wooden match activated it just fine. The only things we couldn’t use were the microwave and oven.
Another problem was that our kitchen has windows by the table area, but not in the cooking area, so it was a little dark. Good thing we have a rechargeable light under the kitchen cabinet that lights our Keurig station. We unfastened it off the velcro strip and propped it up on top of the fridge—which sat almost in the middle of the kitchen. We also had another rechargeable flashlight/nightlight, which solved lighting and, of course, we used our lights on our cell phones and had several other regular battery flashlights. One thing we didn’t want to do was light any candles or our oil lamp, because it would heat up our house.
Without the air conditioning, keeping the house cool was our top priority. This was not new to us as, even with air conditioning, we always liked to save energy and that meant closing blinds and shutters. We opened the windows when it was cooler outside than our inside temperature. So, at night, we had to make some judgement calls. Since our freezer was packed, we would unplug the freezer and then use our power strip to plug our two fans in. One went in the window and the other on a low table to blow on us in bed. We also took this time to recharge our phones, so we could communicate a bit.
Another good thing was we have gas hot water tanks. So, one thing to get cooler was to start the shower on warm and slowly bring the temperature down to cool off before going to bed.
One routine I started because I was already an early riser and farmer, click here Pickle Patch Posts. So, before going to the Pickle Patch, I would fill up the gas containers at Sam’s as they open at 6 am. I was at the pump before it opened and would sip my coffee and check my emails until the pumps turned on. I would finish and head back home to drop off the containers for my husband to take care of when he arose.
I, of course, headed to my favorite place: the Pickle Patch, where I worked until about 9am. Then, it was time for a cool shower then wear my bathing suit top in the house to keep cool.
Resourcefulness
You might wonder why I am telling you my power outage story. Sometimes, by taking your problem apart, you create new ways to research. A good phrase is: Don’t put all your eggs in one basket, meaning rely not only on your preferred ancestry company as there are more ways besides to handle your search. Your ancestry company’s website is a good starting point, and I love Ancestry, but it is not all there is.
I can’t tell you specifically what works for me as it might not work for you as each ancestor is unique and you need to be resourceful in your own way. Two places that are my go to for resourcefulness are FamilySearch and Research Wiki. Why? Where do you think the ancestry websites, like Ancestry, get a lot of their records?
If you noticed, many of the records are coming from FamilySearch, and there are so many records that have been uploaded to FamilySearch that have not been indexed. On FamilySearch, you can be a true sleuth and maybe find what you need on your own. Research Wiki—also on FamilySearch—is a great way to get quick information on your subject that will tell you what to do, where to go, and it usually gives direct links.
If you are not sure where to start on FamilySearch, click here for “Help and Learning”. Below is what it will look like.
It comes down to this: When you have something happen like a power outage or a hard ancestor you can’t find information for, are you being resourceful?
