Chapter 65 - By Candelight

           Many years ago, while working in the bush building roads, I finished my day by candle light.  I have also used the practice with some lovely candle lit dinners with fine food and better friends.  That has been a while too.

            Last night Melaney and I ate by candle light.  We were about to have our meal and watch a little TV when all the lights went out.  We aren’t impressed with the utilities so we had bought a hand full of candles some time ago, and they came in very handy.  We had been in the dark for about half an hour when our neighbour came by with her flashlight to let us know what had happened to the power.  About two miles to the left of us, near Chillimate, someone had failed to negotiate a sharp curve in the road and took out a power pole.  Our neighbour had been coming out in the bus and all traffic was stopped.  She got out of the bus and walked home.  We now had an idea that

someone would be attending to the electricity but didn’t have any idea how long it would be.

            I didn’t have a proper candle holder.  I gave at least a dozen of them away in Kelowna.  I couldn’t put the candle in a plastic dish (of which I have several saved from cream cheese and yogurt).I did have a small glass bottle.  I lit the candle and turned it on its side to let some wax drip into the bottom of the bottle so as to hold the candle upright.  Dripless!!!  The candle was sitting in the bottle a little above the lip of the bottle, but on a slight angle.  By the time it had burned for half an hour it did melt enough to send a stalagmite into the bottom of the bottle and I figured it would prop the candle up till it had burned out.  WRONG!!! By the time the candle was well below the lip of the bottle, it was burning right on the edge of the glass and in very short time there was a bang and the side of the bottle shattered.  It blew glass in shards over an area of the floor and tiny table we had it standing on.  It burned better now, but I got another candle and made a good stand for it with some aluminum foil.  We didn’t stay up very much longer.  I thought we would be more comfortable waiting for the dawn in bed.

            We turned the TV and the fan off, so there wouldn’t be a loud noise in case the power came back.  I got up at 11:30 and noticed a light under my bedroom door.  Good going, that was a fast fix considering the damage.  It could have taken them three or four days, but everything is working fine, including the computers.  We played them on battery last night until they powered out.

            Today it was business as usual.  As a precaution, I have some large ice blocks in the freezer to keep the food frozen in case of short shut off.  I still think that’s a good idea. We are now looking into the prospects of buying a generator. As we know, Melaney must be entertained.