We were planning a fiesta at The Glade which we were calling La Noche Mexicana (Mexican Night). On the night before the party we were expecting 30 guests which is a lot for our little house but we had plenty of chairs and other seats and so were all prepared. Prepared until the a big thunderstorm rolled through the area and knocked out our electricity in the middle of the night. (As a matter of fact it’s still out as I write this post 3 days later.)
Large branches down all over the area knocked out electricity to over 600,000 utility customers.
We waited all day hoping the power would be restored and we wouldn’t need to cancel the party. At 4 o’clock in the afternoon we finally pulled the trigger and decided to call everyone to let them know we were NOT canceling. Since it had been 100 degrees for a few days we thought it only fair to warn them that we would not have air conditioning nor lights.
The table is set and ready for the food and guests.
We had everything set up for a fun fiesta and, yes, about 15 people showed up: some bringing food, some flowers and one even brought a small generator which gave us fans and lights. How awesome is that! (We’re still using the generator.)
Small generator will not run an air conditioner but was much appreciated for fans and lights.
We had a grande time eating, drinking cold drinks and staying cool. The evening cooled off sufficiently so folks could sit outside while others relaxed closer to the food.
The back porch was cool and citronella candles held the mosquitoes at bay.
We posted a drink list which included the following iced drinks:
- Sparkling water with lemon or orange
- Mango tea
- Decaf tea
- Green sun tea
- Lemon balm elixer
- Cucumber water.
Did I mention that we had purchased a new window air conditioner to cool the ground floor? The Glade is on a wooded lot so the downstairs usually stays cool all summer without air conditioning but I wasn’t taking any chances since we had had a number of days in the high 90s and some over 100. Obviously it was useless without electricity.
The air conditioner is at the ready should the power come on. It never did.
Another useless item was our new espresso machine. First, nobody wanted a hot drink and second, the espresso machine also works on electricity.
We had a good old-fashioned time but look forward to having our power restored in the near future. And we totally cleaned up without a dishwasher. Are we pioneers, or what?
Dishes cleaned and ready to be put away.
What do you look forward to?
