SRP: unsung heroes

Well, it was quite the day here in at my house in 'Zona territory. Around 2am, we started having electricity issues. When I got up and started trying to use lights and things, they weren't working correctly. But my TV was. Very strange. I would turn on the bathroom light, and it would come on, bright as ever, then dim to half power, flicker, go off, then right back on to full power again. All within about three minutes. I checked with my next door neighbor, his power was all fine. So I called SRP (our electrical provider) and when I spoke with her, she said if I had partial power, the problem was with my home, and not their service. Damn! So I called and placed a home warranty repair request (gotta get my money's worth!)

Spending the day trying to keep myself busy that doesn't take electricity wasn't as easy as you'd think! I couldn't vacuum. I didn't dare open and close the fridge often (thank goodness for water in the door!) I worried about when or if I'd have power, so .... when do I take a shower? definitely before sunset. Will I have hot water?? (yeah, i did :))

About 3pm, my neighbor on the other side came home, and I happened to catch her outside. We compared notes, and she was having the same issues I was having! She was calling an electrician as well. Hmm, two of us with the same problem? Not our homes' problem. So we both went back inside and called SRP and reported it again. The tech came out within half an hour, and said "yep, you have a bad line. I'll send the underground crew out. It'll be a couple of hours, they're already out on a call."

8pm and the rumble of trucks up the street has me jumping out of bed, getting dressed and going outside to meet the next crew. After they assembled all their working supplies, they checked the ground line, and sure enough, it was bad. The section that was bad was along my back yard fence line. So, out there in the dark, with a few powerful flashlights, a crew of three men dug a pit in my backyard ... not to sound morbid, but nearly a grave sized one! They were friendly and chit chatted and joked around as they worked. Since I had nothing better to do, I sat in a lawn chair and relaxed while they worked. hehehe They quickly replaced the 18" of bad power line and I was back up and running before 9pm. *shew*

It's been a long day, and time for me to be in bed. Don't forget, your service providers are unsung heroes when something goes wrong!! Appreciate them :)) THANKS SRP!!

HUGS to everyone!

PS: Happy Easter to everyone!