The Frostening

So things only got more interesting after the power outage. My last update was on the 15th, around 4 pm. At 7:30 PM we lost power and water, and the night got wacky. It was about 17F outside, and in our hallway it was around 44F. Since we didn’t have any power, we intermittently went out to the car to charge our phones and warm up. I went out with Alex; Now something important to know about the door to our apartment garage is that on the outside it’s electronic key activated. Inside is push activated by a single bar across the door. People going out to their cars to warm up or charge would be locked out normally, but there was a mat that was placed in the crack of the door to keep it ajar so people wouldn’t be stuck in the cold. We’re having record CO2 poisonings from people staying in their cars to warm up, so I don’t like staying out there long.

So, I had just entered the car with Alex when I heard a large crack outside. I wasn’t sure if something broke (like a pipe) so I went to investigate. Turns out, an older woman was sick of the cold air blowing into the hallway and threw the mat out, effectively locking us and all the people in the cars out. I went over before she closed the door to ask what was up — She said she was sick of the cold. I mentioned all the people out in their cars would be locked out, and she said they should have just stayed inside. Now, this was Disney villain level of bitterness and it felt surreal, but I think she was at her limit from the frost. So I said I would have a solution, and spent about ten minutes in 17F weather with no light, duct taping the bar across the door into a permanent unlocked position. People outside would be able to get in, and people inside would be able to just nudge the door open. She later apologized to me while I was working and everything was fine; I’m just happy I went to investigate the sound, otherwise we would have all been locked out.

ANYWAYS, we went to sleep and woke up to no power on the 16th. The day was insanely boring — Nothing to do but be cold and make sure that the windows and doors are properly insulated. We went to Alex’s parents place for a bit since they had a gas stove, and we cooked and boiled water for broth that we drank throughout the day. When the sun went down, we went up to the roof to see what the damage was. From our area all the way to the interstate on the horizon was blacked out, not a single light to be seen. Ugh. We watched YouTube for a bit on Alex’s phone and went to bed at 8:30 PM.

When we woke up the day of the 17th, there was power and water! But only briefly — I enjoyed a cold shower (the water heater was kaput) and filled our bathtub with water (to flush the toilet) and managed to boil four pots worth of water. And it’s a good thing we did — we got an alert on our phone a while later that a water boil was in effect. So much stagnant water is a breeding ground for bacterium, so it was no surprise to me. We watched an episode of King of the Hill and had HOT COFFEE WHICH WAS SOOO NICE, but sure enough we lost power again. I at least got a stew in. Poor Alex waited on his shower, and had to pour bathtub water over himself in the shower to prevent himself from becoming a greaseball. About 5 hours later we got power again, and I’m taking the time to post this before we go under again. I’m waiting on water to come back so I can refill the bathtub and boil some more water. I’m hearing talk that this’ll last until Saturday… That’d stink.

Well, that’s it for now <3