Power Plays: Generators, Jackeries, and Light
The windstorm at the start of the year brought devastating fires to Los Angeles (consider supporting Black Families who are displaced during this disaster through this campaign) and damage to power and homes throughout SoCal neighborhoods. Folks lost power in either “Public Safety Power Shutoff (PSPS)“, or from damage to powerlines from trees or debris. We lost power from BOTH of those and also to our own electrical distribution box that was mortally damaged in the storm. Our power was out for four days. Unfortunately I was in a deep POTShole when the storm hit, so I was already not ambulatory and struggling with my autonomic system that was on constant hyperdrive as can happen with Hyperadrenergic POTS not to be dellusional and think I would have somehow done better had I not already been one foot in the muddy waters. I wouldn’t have. Poweroutages and wind storms shake my system. Maybe my body is sensitive to the barametric changes, or PTSD issues dating way back with me and the Santa Ana winds, but that’s a shaggy dog story for another day.
What we did have this week as we counted our blessings in the darkness, was a lot of time without our supportive technology devices. For me that meant lots of time on my Android phone and the ancient art of story telling. Here was one of my favorites from the week.
So the way the story goes as we sometimes forget the power of our words … I said to Martha & Tricia how NICE IT WAS when the generator was turned OFF for more gas because the loud noise it made around the clock outside was really difficult on my already frayed nerves.
Just then, Michael came in to tell me that there was a gasoline leak in the generator and he wouldn’t be able to start it again. It was getting dark and already day two of the power outage from the raging wind storms so generators were flying off the shelves. Certainly none left in our town, but we did find one at a Home Depot not too far away. So Tricia and Michael set off to procure it! The worked fast once inside the store. Spotting one on someone’s cart Tricia pointed to it decisively and said WE WANT THAT! What aisle is it on? The man pointed to the lockers, but the employee pointed the other direction and told her the aisle to go to. Once in the cart they needed to get more empty gas tanks. And as they walked through the store other shoppers would POINT to the gas tanks and say WE WANT THAT! What aisle is it on? Everything was flying off the shelves and the Depot was only putting out 3-4 at a time but rumor was they had plenty in the back.
Though Tricia and Michael secured one of the LAST generators at Home Depot, their adventure didn’t end there. You see, Dan had decided he really needed a power bank of his own for their bedroom suite, which was filled with two cats and a gaggle of geckos. But if generators were scarce, then power banks were the holy grail of personal power sources. Naturally, Tony decided he had to have a Jackery as well—because, well, that’s apparently how men measure success these days.
Dan quickly discovered that Jackerys were flying off the shelves faster than he could secure an online pickup order at Target. To cover his bets, he placed multiple orders all over town (on my credit card). As luck would have it, one of his orders was marked ready for pickup at a Target not far from the Home Depot where Tricia and Michael were already basking in the glory of their generator triumph.
So, after directing frantic shoppers at Home Depot to the dwindling stock of generators and gas cans (and enjoying the fleeting camaraderie of the chaos), Tricia and Michael headed to the Target parking lot. There, Tricia texted Dan back and forth to get the order number while they waited in the designated pickup spots. They watched as other customers had their orders brought out by the Target staff.
“They ordered two power banks just like ours. That’s funny” Tricia remarked regarding another pick up car near by.
“What’s going to be really funny,” Michael replied with a grin, “is when we find out those were actually OUR power banks!”
And, true to form, the universe obliged. A Target staffer walked over to the car next to them and handed the customer his bag. Then, she reached into her cart and handed him not one but TWO Jackery power banks. The man’s eyebrows shot up in surprise, but he quickly accepted his good fortune, thanked her, and drove off.
Leaning toward the employee, Tricia said, “Excuse me, we’re still waiting for our order.”
The staffer asked, “What’s the name on the order?” And as Tricia shouted out Dan’s last name, the employee froze, her eyes widening as she slapped her hands to her head in horror. In a dramatic gesture, she raised her hands skyward and exclaimed, “Oh no! No, No, NO, NO, NO!” She had just handed $600 worth of technology to the wrong customer.
The next half hour unfolded in a blur of apologies, parking lot meetings with managers, and frantic efforts to issue a refund for the prepaid order (on my credit card). The manager offers a $10 gift card for “their trouble”, clearly not understanding that time is money and these two adventurers command a much higher bounty. However, they were both eager to just GET HOME at this point, so Tricia rolls her window up (forgetting that her back window was rolled down) and the manager thanks them, and Michael shouts out to him in his Southern grace style, “No problem, thank you so much for all you done. You have a great night.”
The manager smiling back “You have a great night too sorry for the inconvenience.”
Tricia rolling up Michael’s window, still forgetting her back window is down, says back to Michael in her best New Jersey sarcasm mocks the jovial sounding exchange,
“Have a great night, Oh ya you have a great night too! Weeeeeeeeee! What you best friends now?!? Stop talking to him and stop being so nice!” Which of course the Manager heard through the open back window, not knowing it was just a BIT Tricia was playing with Michael.
And as they drove off the manager could be heard reiterating to his staff .. ALWAYS CHECK THE RECEIPT.
On their way home, Dan now takes off to another Target opened late at night who now says THEY TOO have fulfilled his order! Of course by this time, my credit card is declined because who charges SIX powerbanks in one hour at multiple stores across town? Bing bang boom, it gets all straighten out! And the happy ending is in the bag.
Dan announced triumphantly in the family chat: “Jackery SECURED.”
To which Martha Bea, quick-witted as ever, replied: “Congratulations, Team Jackery and Team Generator! You’ve successfully completed your first challenge!”
These are the people in the intentional community we’ve built to support one another through listening, lending a hand or lifting our spirits even if we are also wading in the darkness of the muddy waters. Through laughter and love there is always Light.
