No power no bliss?

Tuesday...Now Wednesday

This will be a short article because I'm completely and utterly exhausted; the power outages keep going, in fact, they are instated in 6 to 8 hours cycles. All of this is due a failure in one Electric Sub-Station, that gives power to several states, mine included; there was an explotion, or a series of explosions and we are greatly affected by that since Sunday afternoon. Take a look:

Source

In my town there are schedules for sistematic cuts of electricity, for instance the schedule for my area is this:

• 7am to 1 pm with service

• 1pm to 7pm without service

• 7pm to 1 am with service

• 1 am to 7 am without service

Function with this schedule is a bit harsh to say the least, especially since the three of us work online and depend on just one Desktop Computer and One Smartphone, actualy, as I'm writing this, the power went out for a couple of minutes and came back.

Source

I'm not going to talk about politics

Many people I know have said that the fault is of this person or the next, all of the pointees belong to the government and at the end I get mixed up in a discussion that is too common between every venezuelan around the globe and has been for over 20 years. For me it's just something I don't like wasting my time in, my concern is about the pros and cons this particular situation has, and how to cope with them. I like to spend my time thinking about things I actually have control over, and not something that keeps being the same year after year after year.

There are many cons in this situation, and vary between houses, towns, and the obligations and routines of each individual person, but some are the same for everyone. I'll name a few that came to my head:

1.- The risk of damage in electric utensils: in the year 2019 there was a National Blackout that lasted about four days (in my town at least) and after, the goverment instated a Electric Charge Distribution Program, with 4 hour cycles in differents circuits and lasted for several months. We lost two Tv sets and most important, our fridge. That was the case for many citizens all over the country and in some cases it was way worse than us. Every time there is a power out, when it comes back, usually comes with higher voltages that cause damage to all electric artifacts.

2.-The risk of losing perishable goods: in 2019, since we didn't had much saved we didn't lost much, but we knew of some families that had lost beef, chicken, pork, cheese, eggs, ham, bologna, veggies and such, due the fact that there was no power hence the fridge doesn't work , hence the food went bad.

Imagine living in a country where the economic situation is so bad that you can't afford to stock a fridge for a whole month, and those who can, loose it all due lack of electric power. Disaster... Now the risk is not the same but there is a fear that at some point the power goes out permanently and the same thing happens again.

3.-The risk of loosing our jobs and sources of income: thank's to Covid 19, many people are working from home and online, so, no electricity, no internet,no wi-fi, no work. Those who have smartphones maybe have a chance to keep going without electricity, if their batteries are full and the service provider is good enough that the navigation quota is optimal to survive for 6 or 8 hours. Those of us who don't have that, are in serious trouble.

4.- No rest for the wicked: it's mosquito season over here! Mosquitoes feed with blood of humans and animals, and are attracted to body heat. The temperatures in my town on the afternoon hours can rise to up 36º Celcius, which means that if there is no cooling sistem working, they can easily have a party that can last for about 6 to 8 hours, and at night time, although the temperatures are lower, they same thing happen. A mosquito repellent may cost between 5 to 10 bucks, you do the math.

You may think that there are none, but in every dark path there is a bright side, right?

1.- Plan your day rigorously: This forced us to come up with a schedule and stick to it. Yes, it's made out of force not desire, but still, planning the day a little bit is not that bad, it allows a person to organize better their time, around a difficult situation. For my mom, my sister and me, we had to come up with a schedule to distribute the use of the computer 2 hours each. That schedule will allow us to fulfill work obligations, and other stuff that we may have planned.

2.- I have seen kindness amongst the crowd: when the National Blackout occurred, those people who had stock up their fridges and had the risk to loose it all, made meals and delivered them to those in need. Not all that had the means to do it did it, but the ones that did, deserve admiration and respect for that good deed. Also, the ones who had electricity generators, offered people to go up and charge their phones and tables, which allowed some of us to keep the comunication flowing.

3.- Family time is now: without internet, tv, and other means of entertainment, people had been able to reconnect with each other as family. You see in the neighborhood hoe in the afternoon they are all in the yards, or in front of their houses charing a story, charing a laugh, just sharing. In a day of age where technology is the master of the world, family time is sadly underrated, and even if it is due a failure in the electric service nation wide, it's nice to see how people connect even if it is for a little while.

I'm not happy with this situation, at all! But there is nothing I can do about it, nothing at all. So instead of cursing and bellyaching about the fact that the power is and it's not, I rather see the good that can come out of it, even if its little and for some, meaningless. If I get angry and desperate, that won't change the fact that the power is still out, so, to who am I damaging? Myself and those around me, so for this reason alone, I try to keep a easy and calmed state of mind that in the long run, is what matters.

Thanks to my wonderful sponsors and to all of you beautiful people!

✨✨Blessings✨✨