A natural disaster really helps to put things in perspective.
We’ve been without power, phone signal and internet for five days now, thanks to a cyclone called Alfred.
At first I thought it might be liberating – a mental health detox from technology and social media.
But in fact I’ve found it quite isolating.
When you find yourself standing at the top of your drive in the rain, just to see vehicles drive by, you know that’s not good.
Then there’s the practical things – no fridge or freezer – the food you have to throw away.
No flushing toilet.
I really didn’t anticipate this would matter so much.
We have a domestic wastewater system – which relies on power.
A few days before Alfred hit we received this advice from the company that services our system…
Minimise Water Use – heavy rainfall can overload the wastewater system. Please reduce water usage where possible by limiting laundry, long showers, and excessive flushing.
Prepare for Power Outages – if a power outage occurs, wastewater pumps may be temporarily out of service. If you have a septic system or an onsite treatment plant, please limit water use to prevent overflows.
Let’s face it… no-one wants overflows😲
We’d already run out of hot water, so minimising showers was not an issue.
But you do need to use (and eventually flush) a toilet.
My husband went into work (when he’d usually work from home).
It was then that I really started to feel disconnected.
Luckily we do have a battery powered radio – so at least I had some idea of what was happening.
But every time an authority figure was interviewed they came out with the line…
“Go to our website…”
Hmmmm…. about that no internet.
Suddenly you become aware just how lucky we are on a normal, day to day basis.
We can connect with people in so many ways, at any time.
We have access to water and all the gadgets that plug into this.
We have power at the touch of a switch.
It’s these ‘little’ things, that we wouldn’t normally think twice about, that reveal themselves as so essential.
I promise I will never disregard the importance of a flushing loo ever again!
But despite all this, we’re still very, very lucky.
It is only temporary – we’re both okay – and so is the house.
So many others have had it much worse.
Here’s hoping you and yours are okay.
Ann 🙏