Monday morning I was prepared to spend a day without power to the house. I got up and ready, started a load of dishes in hopes they’d be done in time and I started washing all the pots and pans that we owned because they were all dirty. All. Of. Them.
The workers showed up and shortly after the power to my house was cut and I was doing dishes in a dim basement kitchen. Fine by me.
My friend generously offered to have me at her house during the day when we had no power. She cooked lunch for us as well. It was so sweet of her. And it was nice to visit as well.
They finally finished putting the new panel in around 6:30. The main electrician said he thought back through all the jobs he’s done and ours was one of the most difficult jobs he’s ever worked on. Yikes!
Once the power was on we quickly started dinner. We’ve lived in this house nine years next month and we put in a range hood in basement kitchen we installed that year shortly after that. It stopped working soon after we put it in. Well, it would work sporadically but it was rare. Alex tonight, on a whim whilst we were cooking, turned it on. It turned on! What?! And the real test- we opened the fridge in the basement and the room lights didn’t flicker! They’ve been flickering when the fridge opens for months. We thought it might have just been an overloaded circuit. Not so. Corroded breakers, ya’ll.
Everything works now! Can you imagine how happy that makes me?! I was finally able to put all the extension cords away! I was able to plug the fridge in and it worked! The dishwasher and the washing machine can run at the same time without extension cords! The dryer won’t turn off mid cycle!! I can plug the radio in by it rather than running the cord across the counter! This is all supposed to be normal but for the last few months, and years in some cases,, it hasn’t been for me and I am so so so grateful to have it all fixed and working properly and how we designed it to be.
Now, as I see it, this kitchen remodel is a blessing in so many ways. The non-working outlets in the kitchen were the reason we started this whole project. During the project when the walls were all open we found that the walls had scorch marks from the wires. We were almost finished when they discovered the electrical panel was on its last leg. Now that it is all fixed we realize how close this house was to going up in flames from multiple different areas. It is a scary thought but we were preserved until we had the ability to pay for repairs.
Blessings.
Miracles.
Electricity is a miracle in itself. I am incredibly grateful for it. I hope I don’t ever take it for granted. It might sound dumb, but after the past 8 months of dealing with it not working right, I am so grateful when it does.
And I have to laugh. My next door neighbor “casually” came over yesterday as I was unloading groceries (holding almost a case of heavy cans) to ask why I had so many work trucks at my house all day Monday. It makes me giggle but roll my eyes at how all the old men on my street always have to know what’s going on. Always. At least I know they are watching and will let me know if they see something amiss. I wonder if they come because they want to know or if their wives want information?