I’m not sure which is worse – no water or no electricity! We’ve had an opportunity lately to experience both, and I’m still undecided!

Our most recent stretch without power reminded me of how poorly prepared we were for such events of reasonable duration. Specifically, the need to run the portable gas generator from time to time to be sure it will operate when called upon to do so. I called; it did not answer!

Fresh gas and regular exercise are also recommended by our cardiologist for optimum efficiency. The doctor doesn’t really recommend heart gas, but regular exercise is for sure on the list of practice. I admit to being a bit of a slacker in the exercise department. I know I should be more conscientious. I will be more generous with the generator in the future.

As for the loss of water, that has been very unpleasant, because of the way the water was lost.

Added to the unpleasantness of the experience. We all took a pretty good lick this past weekend. The serious cold coupled with the severe northwest winds was too much for our old house. Thank goodness we were home when the pipes burst. It was quite a scene. Me running around like a headless chicken and my wife accumulating many buckets and wastebaskets to capture the living room Niagara Falls! It was not pretty. The wonderful little nooks tucked away in old houses and the challenging events that reveal them. Waterlines that run against outside walls with no insulation being a prime culprit. Doesn’t take long for a howling northwester and deep cold to test the old copper piping.

There is, however, once things are somewhat stabilized, a bit of a silver lining. This week’s photograph is a sample of seascape reaction to the same cold and wind that created our inside nautical experience. I’m betting that many people were out and about to see the seasmoke dancing across area waters. Traffic was quite active along Grandview Avenue at Spruce Point. Late in the day looking west into the backlit setting sun near the old Druce property was quite spectacular. I generally bypass areas which attract many, so I slipped over to a Signal Point parking space and observed the image shared today.

The view toward Tumbler Island earlier in the day, before our pipes broke, tells the story. The winds chased the wisps of smoke across the bay at a ferocious pace. Tumbler came and went from view. The Jacob Pike, on a mooring, literally disappeared from view and then reappeared, sometimes only partially. I could only take the cold in small bits and came quickly to prefer the warmer interior space of my car and the surprise downpour inside our house.

I believe I prefer seasmoke to either water or power loss.